Parents And Children
by Lily Hanson
Summary: The bond between parents and their children is never a simple one, especially when the children have secrets to hide. The Megaforce Rangers are going to have to learn to balance their new lives with their family lives.
1. Helpful And Rebel

_Disclaimer: I do not own Power Rangers Megaforce. This story is fan-made._

_Author's Note: This is not where the Megaforce series starts. If you want to read the series without getting lost, I suggest you read my stories in the order they appear:_

_**No To Date Nights - The Party Night - Project Partners - Megaforce: Lives Behind The Masks - **__**Prom Night**__ - __**A Trip To Remember - First Meetings - Something She Loves – Protective Morans – Samurai In Harwood County – Rainy Days – Luck Had Nothing To Do With It – Ranger Support**_

* * *

Troy didn't want to say it. She was his mother after all. Though she had made her mistakes, and she couldn't always win the mother of the year award, she was still the best mother Troy could wish to have. She had cared for him, loved him, and supported him since he had been born. She had given birth to him, nursed him when he was sick, comforted him when he was sad, and had always been his voice of reason.

But she was fat. He watched her, with a little smirk on his lips as she waddled down the stairs. It was a few more weeks before she was expected to give birth, but Troy didn't think it was possible for her to get any bigger.

"I see that smile," his mother said and Troy looked back down at his bowl of cereal. She had been in a mood, and his father had warned him not to irritate her too much. Worse come to worst, Mr. Burrows had suggested Troy just look down and do as he was told. That was the best way to calm the pregnant dragon.

"How are you today, mom?" Troy took a spoonful of his breakfast in his mouth. His mother plopped down onto one of the kitchen chairs. She breathed heavily, winded from the walk from her bed.

"The older you get, the harder this is," she sighed and rubbed her stomach. "I can't remember you being this exhausting."

"Remember that at Christmas time," Troy chuckled. "I want better gifts."

His mother shot him a look. Just then, Mr. Burrows came down the stairs. Without being asked, he went to the fridge and started to make breakfast. He had to leave for work in an hour, but he wouldn't leave without making sure his wife and the mother of his children had something to eat.

"What are you feeling today, hon?" he asked.

"Anything," fortunately, today seemed to be one of her good days. Troy could usually tell by the way she asked his father for breakfast. If she was snippy or demanding, then she was having a rough day. If she was casual, it was a good day.

"Anything, coming up," Mr. Burrows said and then he turned to his son, "Troy, I'll be at work all day, and there are still some things that need to be done before the baby arrives."

"Like?" Troy asked. He was an only child, and had never been around babies before. His parents had already filled up the nursery, and the baby was only going to be a tiny, sleeping, pooping human.

"We'll need a car-seat," his mother told him. "Would you mind taking me to the store today to pick one out?"

"Yeah, sure," Troy nodded his head. He had thought about going to Ernie's and seeing if one of the others were there, but he couldn't exactly say no to his mother. At this stage in her pregnancy, she was dangerous.

"Thank you," his mother gave him a warm, thankful smile as her breakfast was brought to her.

-Megaforce-

"Dad!"

"Joe!"

"Dad!"

"Joe!"

"GIRLS!" Mrs. Moran sat up in bed and glared at her daughters, "It's seven o'clock in the morning, and some of us would like to sleep in."

"I'm meeting Jake at the mountain and need to get ready!" Gia said and pointed to the door, "Dad's hogging the bathroom!"

"And I'm going with Jordan to his art class!" Emma said. "If I'm late, he'll be late!"

"I'm on the toilet!" Joe shouted again at the girls. "Mother nature is calling!"

"I hate this motel," Gia rolled her eyes and crossed her arms over her chest. Not only was the motel room small for four people to live in, but there was only one bathroom. Mrs. Moran didn't mind – as a stay at home mother, she had all day to get the bathroom, and usually preferred to sleep in until everyone was gone so she could take her time.

However, Mr. Moran needed to work, and so he needed the bathroom in the morning to get ready. Everything from getting showered, his teeth brushed, getting dressed, and even making tea – the kettle was inside the bathroom.

When the girls also had to get ready early, it was World War III.

At least, that's what it felt like for Mrs. Moran. She groaned, put her pillow over her head and tried to go back to sleep.

Finally, Mr. Moran came out of the bathroom, completely ready for work. He gave each of the girls a kiss on the cheek and walked to the door.

"Oh, GOD! Dad!"

"I told you I was on the toilet!" Mr. Moran chuckled. "Love you, girls!"

He left the motel before he could hear the complaints. Gia pinched her nose tightly as she walked inside. Emma joined her. At this rate, sharing the bathroom was a necessity if they both wanted to be ready on time.

"It doesn't smell like he loves us," Emma said. She opened one of the drawers and pulled out a box of matches. This wasn't the first time the bathroom had a strange odour, so she had brought in the matches to make it a little more bearable. She used the match to light a candle.

"I can shower first," Gia said. "My hair doesn't need to be washed."

"Just make it quick," Emma reached for her toothbrush and turned away from the shower so Gia could slip inside. She started to brush her teeth and her hair at once to save time. "I think your dad does this on purpose."

"I think its revenge of the man," Gia agreed from the shower. "One bathroom and three women to share it with. He's marking his territory."

"Can't he just pee under the door like other males?" Emma asked. She heard the water for the shower turn off and spit into the sink. She averted her eyes as Gia reached for a towel and wrapped it around herself. She used another smaller towel to dry herself, while Emma finished brushing her teeth. Then, with the towel still on, she slipped on her underwear and her bra. She then reached for her hairbrush.

"You can use the shower now," she said. When she looked in the mirror, she saw Emma's jaw had dropped and her eyes were like saucers. Gia quickly realized what had caused that expression on her best friend and she grabbed her towel back from the rack and wrapped it around her shoulders.

"Em…"

"You have a tat…"

Gia grabbed Emma and placed her hand over her mouth. She pinned her up against the door to silence her. The walls of the motel were thin.

"SHH!"

Emma's voice was muffled under Gia's hand. Gia gave Emma a look.

"Are you going to scream?"

Emma shook her head. Gia removed her hand slowly. Emma looked up at her best friend.

"You have a tattoo?" she whispered so Mrs. Moran wouldn't hear. Gia nodded her head.

"I got it a couple of weeks ago."

"Why? How? Where?"

"Does it matter?"

"Yes!"

"SHH!" Gia covered Emma's mouth again, "It's a tiger tattoo. I got it after Cliff. Jake was with me."

"That little…"

"It was my idea," Gia grabbed Emma's arm to rein her in. "Em, please, it's no big deal."

"It's a tattoo!"

"SHH!"

"You know your mother hates tattoos!"

"Why do you think I'm trying to shut you up?" Gia rolled her eyes and quickly got dressed. She put her yellow tank top on, and then her jacket. The jacket covered up the tattoo on her shoulder. If Emma hadn't known it was there, she wouldn't have been able to see it at all.

"She's going to kill you if she finds out," Emma said. Gia started to brush her teeth and rolled her eyes.

"How is she going to find out?"

Emma crossed her arms over her chest. Gia nodded her head in the direction of the shower.

"Go on, stinky. You wouldn't want to be late for Jordan."


	2. Baby Store

Troy felt like more of a mule than anything as he followed his pregnant mother around the mall. She had brought him along to shop for a car seat for the new baby, but it seemed her nesting instincts were still strong. When she had walked by the baby store, she couldn't stop herself from having a look around.

"Troy, wouldn't think just be the most adorable thing for your new baby brother or sister?"

Troy rolled his eyes as his mother tossed another onesie on the pile of stuff in his arms. Teddy bears, books, toys, clothes, nothing was too cute for a baby.

"Mom, what about the car seat?" Troy asked. That was the worst part. They hadn't even gotten around to the car seats yet.

"Troy, we can't rush," his mother said. "We'll need something safe. Besides, it's been so long since you were a baby I don't have anything to pass down to the new baby."

"I can't carry all this for much longer," Troy grunted as he shifted the pile around in his arms to try and keep hold of everything. He followed his mother as she turned down the next aisle and he was pleased to see a row of car seats. He breathed out a sigh of relief as his mother started to look for the right one. Troy found a shopping cart and dumped everything inside. At least now his arms were free.

He didn't know much about shopping for a car seat. In fact, he didn't know anything about car seats except that children used them to ride around in a car. Still, he went over to help his mother pick something out. Naturally, his eye was drawn to the red one.

"Gender neutral?"

"It's only got a two star safety rating," Mrs. Burrows said before she pointed to a box on the top shelf, "Troy, can you get that one down for me?"

"The grey…"

"Pink."

"Pink? Mom, what if it's a boy?"

"It's got a five star rating!" his mother shook her head and gestured for Troy to do as he was told. Troy grumbled as he pulled down the car seat and let his mother inspect it. "Looks good. Seems solid. Very comfortable."

"You're seriously considering putting my baby brother in a pink car seat? That's how we're going to bring boy Burrows into the world?"

"You could be having a sister," Mrs. Burrows smirked at her son, "Then this pink or red debate would be for nothing."

Troy saw a worker walking by. Surely the car seat had to come in another colour. When he asked, the worker shook his head.

"Sorry, that's our last one. We'll get a new shipment in a couple of weeks."

"We'll take it!" Mrs. Burrows smiled, "Troy, help the man carry all our stuff to the register."

"But what if the baby is a boy?"

"He'll be a safe boy," Mrs. Burrows assured her son. She waved him off to the register before having another look around down the aisle, just in case she missed something. She was focused on the product on the shelves so she didn't see the man walking down the other way. She bumped into him, and nearly tumbled over. Fortunately, he grabbed her by the arm.

Then he called her by her name, "Jen?"

She looked at him, first to apologize, but when she recognized his face she slapped him hard. The clap from when her open palm met his cheek echoed throughout the store. In a huff, she turned away from him and marched off to the front counter, where Troy was sorting through all the baby things.

"Jen! Jennifer!" the man followed her while nursing his sore cheek. When he saw her grabbing a teenage boy by the arm he ran a little faster. He blocked their exit.

"Jennifer, is that…?"

"Move it, Carl."

"Mom, we didn't pay for anything!" Troy said. He did not want to have to come back and do all this again tomorrow. He knew it would only be worse.

"I'll come back with _your father_ this weekend," Mrs. Burrows assured her son. The man, Carl, shook his head. He looked at Troy.

"Jen, he's got to be…"

"You lost everything the day you walked out on us," Mrs. Burrows snapped. She wrapped her arms around her son and walked him out of the store. Troy looked back in confusion.

"We'll get ice-cream," his mother promised him. Troy shook his head.

"Mom, was that…?"

"No one, Troy. He was no one."

"Mom, was that…?"

"I said no one!"

"I just…"

"No one!" his mother shouted and the crowd in the mall all started to stair. She grabbed Troy's arm and dragged him away.

Inside the store, Carl rubbed the back of his neck as he watched Jen and her son leave. It had been a long time, but he was sure the boy's name was Troy. There was no way it could be anyone but. The age looked like it matched perfectly.

Suddenly, he felt a tap on his shoulder. He looked over and saw a young girl, his daughter, carrying several bags. She dumped them in his hands.

"Here."

"Rebecca…"

"Dad, this is the last place I want to be seen with my father! What if my friends are here? Can't you just wait in the car? I know what I need."

"You're humiliated because I'm here?" Carl asked his daughter and he raised an eyebrow. He pointed to her expanding stomach, "I'm the one humiliating you?"

"Yes!"

"Really?"

"Yeah!"

"You're fifteen and pregnant, and _I'm_ your source of humiliation?"

"Yes!"

"Your loving father who is buying all your baby's necessities?"

"Yes!"

"Rebecca…."

"Whatever. I'll be in the car," she stomped off in a huff, leaving her father to carry all of her bags as he tried to keep up with her.


	3. His Real Father

"A tattoo?"

Emma nodded her head. She and Jordan were walking home to his place after Jordan's art class. He had drawn an amazing picture of twilight and was carrying it under his arm. He had signed it at the bottom, and would give it to Emma once she went home. He wasn't sure where he was going with his art, but in case he was famous one day, he wanted her to have something of his.

But that wasn't the topic of their conversation at the moment. Emma had told him about the incident in the bathroom this morning, where she had caught sight of Gia's tattoo.

"A tiger, right on her shoulder."

"Left or right?"

"Does it matter?"

"I want to know."

"Left," Emma rolled her eyes, "Jordan, that's not the point."

"She says she got it after Cliff. Apparently that was a pretty big turning point in her life so I don't really see the problem."

"She's seventeen. Who would have done that to her?"

"A lot of people don't care if you pay them enough money."

"I'm just worried," Emma bit her lip. "I've got to say, I like this Gia a lot better than the Cliff Era one, but… what if Gia's just a bit too…"

"Tough?" Jordan shook his head, "Gia's a smart girl, Emma, and it's one tattoo of her Zord animal no less. It's probably really important for her, just let it go."

"Vanessa doesn't know about it. Gia probably won't ever tell her. She'd flip out. She's hiding things from her parents."

"It's one tattoo. My mom has one."

"But what if it leads to… other stuff? Gia's been through a lot, lately. What if…"

"She's a smart girl. She's got one tattoo on her shoulder. As far as I'm concerned, that's not a big deal. I think you're worried for nothing."

Jordan walked up to the door of his house, which his parents had rented out for him so he would have a place to stay in the city. He used a key to open the door and invited Emma inside, "I can make us something for lunch, if you'd like."

Emma nodded her head and smiled. She could never pass up time with Jordan.

-Megaforce-

In the park, Troy had finally gotten away from his mother for the afternoon and was skipping stones in the lake. He couldn't take his mind off what had happened at the mall that morning. His mother had run into a man who had obviously gotten on her bad side, but there was something strange about the encounter, and something very familiar about the man.

"_You lost everything the day you walked out on us,"_ he remembered his mother saying. It was a pretty big clue as to who the man was. Troy didn't want to assume, but he was pretty sure.

He remembered being four years old and running down the stairs after a nightmare. He went straight for the living room, because he knew that was where his parents watched TV after they put him to bed. He ran right for the couch, but neither of his parents were there.

Then he was lifted from the ground and his mother hugged him tightly to her chest as she cried. Troy remembered she had a note in her hand. Later he learned that was the note his birth father had left on the day he walked out.

Troy wanted nothing to do with his birth father. He had a family now. His mother loved him, his step-father he considered to be his real father. They were having a baby. The family was happy. He didn't need to know the reasons why. He thought he didn't want to know the reasons why.

But now that he thought his father was back, he couldn't stop himself from wondering. He understood that sometimes marriages just didn't work, and people made the choice to walk away, but why would his father leave him? He had just been a boy at the time. He couldn't have possibly done anything to deserve having a parent walk out on him.

Unfortunately, he couldn't see himself getting any answers. He had no proof this man was his birth father, and even if he did, he had no idea where this man lived. With a sigh, Troy skipped his last stone and then started back to the house.

His house wasn't too far from the park. It was one of the reasons his parents had bought it. They were desperate to see Troy make friends when they moved and thought being close to a teenage hangout would make it easier. It didn't take him long to get home, nor did it take him long to notice a car hanging around across the street from his driveway. There was a man inside. Troy had his morpher with him, and he felt uncomfortable with someone sitting just outside his house, so he walked over and knocked on the car window.

When it rolled down, he saw the man from the store. The man smiled at him and then stepped out of the car.

"Troy, right?"

Troy grabbed the straps of his backpack tightly. His morpher was inside. He nodded his head.

"Yeah."

"Troy Daniels?"

"Burrows," Troy said, but then he nodded his head, "You're him, aren't you?"

"I guess your mother doesn't talk about me a lot, huh?"

"She doesn't have to, I don't want to hear it," Troy said. "Mom and I are happy now. Mom, dad, and I are happy now."

"I guess she remarried. Good for her, she deserves someone better."

Troy rolled his eyes and started to walk to the house. His birth father came after him and put a hand on his shoulder.

"Troy…"

"I don't want anything to do with you," Troy growled and then turned around, "How did you find us, anyways?"

"Internet. Look, I just wanted to explain myself. I was an idiot for…"

"Save it," Troy shook his head. He wanted to know the reason, but not on his birth father's terms. He wanted to be ready for it. He didn't want to be surprised in the middle of his street.

"Troy, there was another woman and another baby," his father said. He grabbed his arm gently and held him back, "Your mother and I were fighting a lot. It was over anyways."

"Let go," Troy ripped his arm away and started to walk to the house. He walked inside and straight past his father – his real father – with tears in his eyes. When Mr. Burrows, who was home for lunch to care for his wife, saw his son upset, he looked out the window to see why. His wife had already told him about the run in in the store, and Mr. Burrows would never forget the face of the man who hurt his family before he was around to defend them. He had seen a few pictures from Troy's childhood, and they were enough to burn the image of the man's face in his mind.

He stormed out of the house as Carl tried to get into the car. He grabbed Carl's shoulder and pulled him back. Carl fell into the street and looked up.

"Hey…"

"Stay away from my son!"

"I just thought I'd explain…"

"You don't get that right," Mr. Burrows said. "Stay away from my son and get your ass off my street before I call the cops."

"I…"

"Leave!" Mr. Burrows shouted. Carl stumbled as he got to his feet and he fell into his car. He drove off, and Mr. Burrows watched until he was gone before he headed back inside. His wife was napping, and Troy was nowhere to be seen. Mr. Burrows walked up the stairs and knocked on Troy's bedroom door.

"I'm doing homework!"

"It's summer," he said as he walked in. He saw Troy sitting on his bed, playing with the red Power Ranger action figure he had gotten as a boy. He sat down beside his son, "You know, don't you?"

"It's him?"

"Yeah."

"Why is he back?"

"I'm not sure," Mr. Burrows wrapped his arms around his son. "I know this is probably a conversation you should be having with your mother but…"

"Do you know?"

"Yeah."

"Can you tell me? I… I want to know what happened."

Mr. Burrows nodded his head and got comfortable on the bed.

"There was another woman."

"Well, yeah…"

"For a while, Troy. For a few years before it happened, there was another woman. The marriage your… parents had didn't stay happy for long. Your mother says she tried to make things work."

"It broke her heart when he left," Troy said. "I remember her crying when she found out. I've never seen her that upset."

"She had a fight with him," Mr. Burrows continued. "They fought about something stupid, I guess. She can never seem to remember what it was about. A few days later, she found him packing up. He said he was going on a business trip with a colleague. He left when she put you to bed. She found a note explaining everything. He admitted to having been unfaithful to her for years with the very colleague he left with. He said he was too unhappy and wanted to start a new life."

"So he ran off with a long-time mistress?"

"I'm sorry, Troy," Mr. Burrows gave his son a loving squeeze. "I know it's not much more information, but…"

"How long did he cheat on mom?"

"The letter says you were just about to turn one when he met the other woman. It was a long time affair, son, and it was a long time ago. The important thing is that we're happy. I'd never cheat on your mother, and if something did come between us, I'd never let it change what you and I have."

Troy wiped his eyes and nodded his head. This was why Mr. Burrows was his father. He wrapped his arms tightly around him for a hug.

"I'd understand if you have questions," Mr. Burrows said. "Your mother's willing to talk to you about this and I'm always here for you. But… if you think that's not enough and you want to talk to your birth father, I could arrange something."

"He hurt mom and he walked out," Troy shook his head. "I know what happened now. I know why. It's okay."

"Are you sure?"

"Yeah, dad."

"Good," Mr. Burrows smiled. He got up from the bed, "Oh, and Troy. Thanks for taking your mother out today. I _really_ didn't want to have to go with her."

"You know we spent an hour shopping before she looked at the car seats, right?"

"Yep," Mr. Burrows smirked guiltily. Troy rolled his eyes.

"Dad! You set me up!"

"I had work."

"You know we didn't buy anything," Troy said. "Mom says she'll go out this weekend with you."

"Uh… I'm working overtime?"

"Yeah right!" Troy laughed and rolled his eyes. "You're the one who knocked her up. You've got to buy the baby stuff."

"But I…"

"And whatever you do, don't get the pink car seat!"


	4. More Rough Seas Ahead?

After spending the better part of her day with Jordan, Emma rode her bike to the mountain. She was going to pick Gia up from her date with Jake, and they would walk back home together. Emma was still nervous about the tattoo on Gia's shoulder, but Jordan had talked her down. It didn't mean she was going to forget about it. She wasn't about to tattle on her best friend to her parents. She would keep an eye on Gia, though, worried this was only the start of rebellious behaviour. Gia had been through a lot, and though Emma couldn't see what Gia had to rebel against; she knew it was common for troubled teens to start doing something stupid.

Emma didn't want to see Gia fall down another bad path. She rode to the bottom of the mountain and saw Gia coming down. It still made her nervous to see her best friend trying such a dangerous sport, but Gia was improving and she was having a good time. Emma was glad to see she was happy doing something she loved.

"One more run," Gia said when she saw Emma had arrived, "There's this one turn I wanna get before we go."

"Go for it," Emma nodded her head, "Where's your stuff?"

"On the bench," Gia pointed down the path. "I'll be right back down, Em. I promise."

Emma set her bike down safely near a tree and walked over to a nearby bench. She saw Gia's yellow bag sitting unsupervised and rolled her eyes. She knew the contents of Gia's bag well enough at this point, so opened it up to make sure everything was still in there. She saw Gia had also brought her wallet with her, and so she checked to make sure all her cards, money, and ID were in place. Fortunately, it all was, but as she checked through the pockets, she noticed something odd. Gia had two driver's licences.

"That's weird," she frowned and checked the first. It had all the right information, as far as Emma was concerned. Her address, her birthday, her height – it was all correct.

The next license had similar information, but when it came to the birthdate, it was wrong. February 17th was right, but 1990 was seven years older than Gia actually was. It was a fake ID. Gia had a fake ID. Emma put the card back and gulped as she heard footsteps coming over. She put everything back in the bag as she wondered why Gia would need a fake ID. Sure, sometimes, they liked to break curfew or push the boundaries when it came to the rules Gia's parents had put into place, but they weren't bad girls. Gia wasn't a bad girl.

"I nailed it!" Emma heard Gia say and she turned around to see her best friend smiling proudly. Jake had his arm wrapped around her, and he looked equally proud.

"You should have seen it, Emma," he told her, "Gia's really getting good at this Mountain Boarding stuff. You might be able to race her down the hill pretty soon."

"Yeah," Emma handed Gia her bag, "You shouldn't leave this unattended."

"I've got nothing valuable in there," Gia shrugged. "Jake was holding on to my morpher."

"Still."

"Nothing valuable?" Jake asked. He snatched her bag from her and pulled out Tigger – the stuffed tiger he had bought her. "You're hurting his feelings."

"Nothing of value to other people," Gia stuffed the tiger back in her bag and rolled her eyes. "Seriously, who is going to steal a teddy bear?"

"Teddy thieves," Jake shrugged his shoulder, "They're out there. That's how Beary went missing when I was little."

Jake then stopped when he heard his phone ringing. He checked who was calling and rolled his eyes. He was about to put his phone back in his pocket when he saw the look on Gia's face.

"It's my mom."

"Answer it."

"Gia…"

"She's reaching out to you. Jake, remember what I said? I'm not standing between you and your family."

"She and dad are getting a divorce…"

"That doesn't mean she's not your mother," Gia grabbed the phone from his pocket and put it in his hand. "What she did was mean, but she does love you."

"She hurt you, Gia. She made you consider suicide."

"Answer it."

Jake grumbled and walked away to answer the call privately. Gia had already made it very clear that she wanted to see Jake make amends with his mother if she tried to reach out. Jake was slightly interested, but he couldn't get over what his mother had done to Gia. He was still angry she had stooped so low, and kicked an already broken Gia just to try and protect him. He had never been the one that needed protecting. Gia never had any intention to hurt him. And when it was all said and done, it was Gia who had rising up to be the bigger person, while his mother had continued with the nasty lie. To this day, she wouldn't admit to anyone outside of her soon to be ex-husband and Jake that she had drawn the pictures in Jake's notebook.

While he was gone to answer his phone, Emma looked to Gia, "How is everything?"

Gia started to take off her helmet and the rest of her protective equipment and shrugged, "Same as this morning."

"Still have the tattoo?"

"Yeah, Em. It's permanent."

"Why did you get it?"

Gia shrugged her shoulders. She reached to her bag and pulled out the stuff tiger.

"Jake compared me to the tiger when he gave me this. He said I was strong, just like it. And tigers are strong, beautiful creatures. You agree with me, right?"

"Yeah, of course."

"Look, Em, I'm feeling better about everything," Gia stood up and touched the pink Ranger's arm. "And I am getting better, but sometimes I need a little reminder that I'm not… worthless."

"You can't listen to Cliff."

"I don't want to. That's why I got the tiger, Emma. It's to remind me I'm not. I thought about getting a snake or a phoenix, that way you or Jake would always have my back…"

"You know we do."

"But I'm done relying on other people to keep me safe. I'm really, really, grateful for everything you've done, but it's time I learn to rely on myself. I've got my back. Well, I've got my shoulder. Just promise you won't tell mom."

"Gia…"

"Please, Emma. Promise?"

Emma took in a deep breath and then nodded her head, "As long as you're not doing anything else stupid."

Gia smiled, but she didn't say anything. She continued to pull off her protective equipment as Jake walked over.

"Mom invited me over to dinner," he said. He caught Gia staring at him and sighed, "I said yes."

"She's reaching out. That's a good sign."

"Gia, she's still being a bitch about you, though."

"So? I can take it," Gia said. "Your mother taught me that not everyone's in my corner, and that's okay."

"Are you sure?"

"Yeah."

"Okay, well…" Jake looked down at his shoes as he started to play with the dirt, "Mom's inviting her new boyfriend and his daughter over for dinner. She wants a meet the family kind of thing. I'd said I'd come, but only if you could come with me."

"Jake…"

"She was a little hesitant about it at first. She said a few mean things," Jake said, "But I guess she wants to see me a lot. You were right, Gia, she is reaching out. You're invited."

"Seriously?"

"Dinner is tomorrow night. I'll pick you up."

"See, Jake," Gia smiled as she gave him a kiss on the cheek, "Your mother's going to come around. And I don't care if she never likes me. As long as the two of you are okay…"

"Really?"

"I'm not going to stop you having a relationship with your mother."

"Gia's good like that," Emma smiled and hugged the yellow Ranger.

"Alright, well, I guess I'll see you tomorrow, then," Jake leaned in for another kiss before he turned and started to walk away from the girls. Gia turned to Emma before she grabbed her board.

"Are we walking home?"

"I guess. I rode here on my bike. Unless you want to ride on my handlebars…?"

"Yeah, no," Gia shook her head and laughed. She knew Emma wasn't serious. "So how was Jordan's art class? Were the people there as old as in Ms. Chesterfield's?"

Emma chuckled, "No, they're about our age, maybe a little older," as Emma said this she was reminded of the fake ID in Gia's wallet. She was nervous to ask, scared she might hear an answer she didn't want to hear.

Or worse, she was scared Gia would lie about it. There was no good reason for Gia to have a fake ID – least of all one she kept hidden from her best friend.


	5. Family Dinners

His father was right. Troy did have a happy family. It wasn't perfect, but it was what worked for him.

It had been a little over a day since he had bumped into his birth father. A little over a day since he found out that his father hadn't just walked out on him and his mother, but he had cheated on the family too, and left town with his mistress. Not that it matter. Troy had a good father now. He had a father who loved him, who cared for him, and who always put him and his mother first.

More exciting than that, his family would soon grow. He wasn't sure what kind of life his birth father led, but he had left behind something special. He had left behind something Troy hoped he regretted abandoning. He didn't wish bad things towards his birth father, but he sure wasn't going to wish him a great life.

"Mom, are you sure you want another helping?" Troy teased as his mother reached for another serving of dinner. She gave him a look.

"I'm eating for two."

"Doesn't mean you have to eat like a pig."

"Watch it, young man," his mother pointed her fork at him, "I've yet to assign midnight diaper duty. It could be you looking out for number one and two."

"Help me clean up the table, Troy," his father said as he started to collect the plates. Troy nodded his head and he did as he was asked. He went to the dishwasher and started to load everything inside while his father carried over the dishes, the pots, and the pans.

"Hey, Troy," his mother slowly turned around in her chair and smiled softly at him, "About yesterday… you know what happened between your father and I… it's got nothing to do with you, right?"

Troy could see the look of guilt on his mother's face. Since the truth had come out, she had been a little sensitive about the whole ordeal. Really, Troy hadn't learned anything that had surprised him. He had always known his father had run off with a female colleague, and so just assumed there was a relationship in there. All that he had really discovered the day before was that the affair had lasted for years before his father knew what he wanted.

"I'm just glad we're finally happy," Troy answered. His mother nodded his head.

"We've been happy for a long time. I found a good man. It took two tries, but I managed to snatch one up."

"And this good man is about to get even better," Mr. Burrows announced as he dug through the freezer. He pulled out a container of ice-cream, "Who's ready for dessert?"

-Megaforce-

Emma knocked on the bathroom door gently before walking in. Gia was getting ready for dinner at Mrs. Holling's. She knew there was very little she could do to get Mrs. Holling to like her, but she could at least look presentable. She had ditched her usual black pants, yellow tank, and black jacket for a skirt and a blouse. At the very least, it was sure to impress Jake.

Emma walked in as Gia grabbed the blouse from the towel bar. She saw the tattoo again and it only served to remind her of the fake ID. Emma had done a Google search on fake IDs, and not only was it illegal for Gia to own one, but she had also failed to find a good reason for why Gia could have one.

"Be careful of Mrs. Holling," Emma said. "We know she can be a little nasty."

"She can't hurt me, Em. I'll be fine," Gia promised. She slipped on the blouse and then turned around, "Can you see Tigger?"

"No."

"Good. Mom would freak, and I'm sure Mrs. Holling wouldn't hesitate to get me in trouble."

"Gia…"

"Em, it's _just_ a tattoo. And it's the only one I'm going to get, I promise."

"Just… no drinking tonight, alright? Or smoking, or…"

Gia looked to Emma like she had grown a second head, "What are you, my mother? Since when do I drink or smoke?"

"You know how bad drugs are. Your dad made us sit through that power point before high school, remember? You remember we swore never to let the peer pressure get to us."

"Yeah, Em, I remember," Gia nodded her head. "Relax, I'll be a good girl. If I'm lucky, I'll be so good, Mrs. Holling won't have any mean things to fire my way."

There was a knock on the door. It was Jake coming to pick up Gia. Emma felt her stomach flip. She didn't know how to address the issue of the fake ID without insulting her best friend. Gia was getting better, but Emma worried she was still very sensitive when it came to trust. If she wanted Gia to trust her with everything again, Emma had to show Gia that she trusted her.

Unfortunately, the secret tattoo and the fake ID weren't giving Emma a lot to trust in.

"Just, don't be stupid, okay…"

"I won't," Gia said. She grabbed her bag, double checked that everything was inside and then left the room. Emma followed Gia out and then took a seat on hers and Gia's bed. The Morans looked to her and noticed her frown.

"Is something the matter?" Mr. Moran asked.

Emma shrugged her shoulders, "It's just hard not to worry about her sometimes."

"You're telling us," Mrs. Moran chuckled. She sat down beside Emma on the bed and hugged her, "We trust Jake. He'll take care of her."

-Megaforce-

Jake and his father were living in a hotel until his father could afford a place of their own. Unfortunately, with the destruction Octoroo had caused, it would be a while still before there was a decent place available.

His mother, however, had kept the house. It was the first time Jake would be going home in a couple of months. He felt like a stranger, but he also felt at home as he walked up the driveway.

"Just… remember, mom wants me here," Jake said and nervously played with his hands, "So she might still be a little hostile to…"

"What's _she_ doing here?" his mother must have seen him from the window and greeted him at the door. Unfortunately, she didn't seem too pleased that Gia had tagged along. If anything, she didn't seem welcoming at all. Gia was starting to get the impression Jake had lied to her. She crossed her arms over her chest and glared at the black Ranger.

"You said…"

"Mom, Gia and I are dating," Jake took her hand and looked down at his mother, "I'm here to try and make peace. Gia's here trying to be the bigger person…"

"She's definitely bigger, alright," Mrs. Holling scoffed and turned away but she left the door open so her son and Gia could walk in. Gia ripped her hand from Jake's and continued to frown at him.

"Alright, one: did she just call me fat?"

"Uh…"

"Two: what the hell, Holling?" Gia punched him in the arm, "I thought you said your mother was alright with me showing up."

"I told her I was bringing a friend…"

"But you didn't tell her it was me?" Gia punched him in the arm again, "Jake, how is this going to help?"

"Gia…"

"I don't care what your mother thinks of me. I don't care if she hates me. I want _you_ to have a relationship with her. She's doing this to reach out to you, and you're ruining it!"

"Gia…"

"She's making an effort, and you're going to blow it!"

"Gia, will you just listen?"

"No, I told you, Jake! I told you I don't want to stand between you and your mother. If you have to make a choice…"

"Gia, it's you!"

"Your mother's trying to reach out to you. Accept it and see if this relationship can be mended. I'm not letting you lose your mother for some girl."

"You're more than some girl, Gia…"

Gia shook her head and turned to the door, "No, Jake. Just… just call me after dinner, alright. At least try to have one civil conversation with your mother."

Gia slammed the door as she walked out. She wasn't exactly mad, but she wanted him to think she was so he would stay at his house.

Although, she didn't appreciate being lied to.

She walked down the driveway and across the street to a bus stop. She saw there was already a girl on the bench there so she stood and waited for the bus to come and take her home. The girl looked up at her.

"You were at Mrs. Holling's house?"

"Yeah. Do you know her?"

The girl shook her head. Gia looked down and noticed the girl was very pregnant, and yet she looked to be no older than her.

"She's going to be my step-mother."

"You're sure?"

"Yep," the girl crossed her arms over her chest and pouted. Gia knew that look. She had worn it many times. It was a look that meant she was angry with her life. "Dad's already talking about the big proposal. If all goes well, that's happening tonight."

"You don't sound too excited."

"You've met the dragon lady. Besides, dad's not exactly a gem either. He's the reason for this," the girl pointed to her stomach.

"I thought I had problems," Gia muttered and looked away nervously. The girl rolled her eyes.

"Ew! Gross! No, I was getting back at him for chasing my mother away, and this stupid thing happened."

"He chased your mother away?"

"She found out he had another family. She died just after that."

"I'm sorry."

"No, he's going to be sorry. Once I get my life and my body back, he's in for hell, I swear. Do you have both your parents?"

Gia nodded her head. The girl smiled.

"That's sweet."

Gia nodded her head again and then saw the bus coming from down the street. At that very same moment, she felt her phone going off and figured it was a text message from Jake. Seeing the bus was caught at a red light, she knew she had a little time to answer it. She set her bag down on the bench, beside the girl, and took out her phone to answer it. As she turned her back, the girl looked at the bag. She slipped a little bag out of her pocket and stuffed it into the outside pocket of Gia's bag. Then she grabbed a small bottle from her other pocket, and stuffed it in as well.

Gia turned back around to put her phone away and then looked at the girl. The girl smiled at her.

"So, that's my story. How do you know Mrs. Holling?"

"I'm dating her idiot son," Gia muttered.

"Flake?"

"Jake," Gia frowned. She picked up her bag, "Look, I'm a little hard on him, but I'm his girlfriend. Don't call him names, especially before you meet him, got it?"

"Whoa, okay, sorry," the girl put her hands up as the bus pulled up at the stop. She pushed herself off the bench and started to climb in the bus. She walked right past the driver without making any attempt to pay for the trip. The driver saw her walk by and then looked to Gia expectantly.

"She's not with me," Gia shook her head and handed the driver enough money for her ride. The bus driver took the money, but then he wouldn't let Gia pass.

"You need to buy another ticket."

"I just bought mine…"

"You're not seriously going to make the pregnant kid walk. Pay up, or get off."

"But I…" Gia reached into her bag and pulled out her wallet. She tried to fish out some more change but she had none. The bus driver opened the doors again and people started calling for her to get out. Gia just turned around and stomped off the bus. It drove off without her.

"Fucking kids," she grumbled and sat down on the bench. Now she had no money to get home and she couldn't go back inside the Holling residence. She wouldn't give Mrs. Holling more reason to hate her by taking her son away from dinner so he could take her home. She decided she was just going to have to walk.

"Your family hates me, Jake," she muttered and started off down the street on foot.


	6. Hold My Hand

They were spontaneous, but they were fun. After dinner, Mr. Burrows and Troy got a little carried away. They made up a fort in the living room and were having a pillow war. Mrs. Burrows had gone to bed, saying she didn't feel well from having eaten too much.

Troy loved his mother, but he also loved time alone with his father. It was a time where they were allowed to let loose and be boys. They could throw things around the house without having to hear Mrs. Holling complain about possibly breaking the furniture.

As Troy poked his head out from behind the couch, he was smacked in the back of the head by a pillow. He looked over and saw his father doing a little dance.

"10-6, junior. You've gotta catch up."

Troy picked up the pillow and launched it again. It soared over his father's head and straight for the shelf. Troy's eyes widened when the pillow hit a decorate plate and sent it to the ground.

Fortunately, Mr. Burrows was quick. He dove for the plate and caught it before it could smash on the ground. He breathed out a sigh of relief as he got up and placed the plate back where it belonged.

"I guess that's why mom doesn't like our pillow wars."

"Maybe we should clean up," Mr. Burrows agreed and started to grab the pillow. As he did, he heard footsteps from upstairs. He looked to Troy with wide eyes, "How does she always know?"

"Chris!" Troy heard his mother calling and he ran as quickly as he could to sort everything out before she could reach the bottom of the stairs. "Chris!"

"Yes, honey?" Mr. Burrows straighten out the cushions on the couch and sat on them. He turned on the TV and quickly muted it so his wife would think he and Troy were just watching the baseball game.

Mrs. Burrows stepped into the living room and looked very uncomfortable. She was holding her stomach, "The baby's coming."

"But it's early?" Mr. Burrows checked his watch. "It's not due for another few weeks."

"Well, it's coming now," Mrs. Burrows said and then moaned loudly in pain. Troy looked to his father with worry on his face. Both men knew what they needed to do.

Troy jumped off the couch and darted upstairs to the nursery while Mr. Burrows gently took his wife in his arms and helped her out to the car. He helped her put her shoes on (a matching pair and on the right feet) and tried to sooth her as she cursed loudly for all the neighbours to hear.

Troy stumbled down the stairs with the hospital bag and joined his parents in the car.

"It's not too early for the baby, right?" Troy hadn't been sure about having a little brother or sister when he first found out, but now he was excited for the newest addition. He knew early labour was never a good sign, and really didn't want to see something happen to his little sibling.

"No sense in worrying now," Mrs. Burrows told her son. "Just get me to the hospital."

"Step on it, dad," Troy said and he reached his arm to the front of the car to hold hand with his mother. She squeezed his hand tightly, "Ow!"

"You think you're in pain?" she screamed at him, and then apologized profusely for it.

-Megaforce-

Gia finally made it back to her motel room and fumbled through her bag to find the key. She found it and opened the door, and was greeted by a large dog that jumped up on her chest and knocked her to the ground. She thought she had the wrong door, until Emma leaned over her. The pink Ranger pulled the dog back.

"Sorry. He's a rescue."

"I leave for a couple of hours and you adopt a dog?" Gia muttered as she sat up.

"Emma found him in the parking lot," Mrs. Moran explained to her daughter as she helped her up. "He was sniffing around the car for thirty minutes before we went out to see if he belonged to anyone."

"Emma begged we let him stay his owner shows up," Mr. Moran grumbled from the bed as he flipped through the channels on the TV. "If you thought there was no room to breathe before, just wait until Scamp over there gets in your face."

"We can't leave him on the streets," Emma knelt down and wrapped her arms around the dog's neck. "Anything could happen to him!"

"He's a big boy, he'll be fine," Mr. Moran said. Emma shook her head and let the dog back inside. Mrs. Moran and Gia followed, and they made sure to close the door so the dog couldn't get out. Gia walked to the desk and set her bag down on the chair.

"Well, that was a bust," she grumbled. Her family looked to her.

"Shouldn't you be eating dinner?"

Gia walked to the fridge and shook her head, "Jake lied to me about his mom letting me over. She wasn't happy when I showed up."

"So you left?" Emma asked. Gia nodded.

"His mother's making an effort. He's got to at least try and meet her half way. I know he's not going to do that if I'm hanging around. He can do what he wants, but I'm going to stay out of it… hey! Fido! That's my bag!"

Gia saw the dog sniffing around her bag and snatched it away from the dog. He barked loudly at her and jumped up, trying to take the bag from her. "Rex, stop it!"

"He probably just smells something on you," Mrs. Moran assured her daughter as Emma tried to pull the dog away from Gia. "Do you have something in your bag that would draw his attention?"

"No," Gia answered but the dog continued to bark, "Shut it, Duke!"

"I'll take the bag to the bathroom," Mrs. Moran said and took the bag from her daughter. "Hopefully once it's out of sight, Buddy over here can stop his barking."

"Whatever," Gia said and glared at Emma, "You just had to rescue a dog."

"You know me," Emma smirked at her best friend, but then the smile fell from her face when she saw Mrs. Moran passing Gia's bag to Mr. Moran, who for some reason took a whiff of the bag. Then he started to go through it. Gia, seeing Emma's expression fall, turned around. When she saw her father going through her bag she flipped.

"DAD!" she reached across the bed and tried to take the bag away from him, but her father pulled the bag out of her reach and gave her a hard glare.

"Sit down."

"Dad!"

"Sit down!" her father yelled so loudly, the dog stopped barking and hid behind Emma's legs. Gia took a seat at the desk and watched as her father dug through her bag. He pulled out her morpher, her wallet, the tiger, and a few more of her personal belongings. When the big pocket was empty, he moved to the smaller ones. He found a couple of tampons (which he tossed aside quickly), Gia's cell phone, and then an empty bottle and a bag.

"I knew I smelt alcohol, but this," he held up the bottle and the bag, "What the hell is this, Gia?"

"I have no idea!" Gia was just as shocked at her father. "I didn't… I mean… that's not mine."

"Then what the hell is it doing in your bag? And what the hell is this?" he held up the little plastic bag.

"I don't know?"

"Weed," Mrs. Moran whispered to her husband. "It's weed, Joe. It's just…"

"Just? Just! This is what our daughter's been up to, and you…?"

"That's not mine!" Gia screamed. "I have no idea how that got there."

"It's your bag, Gia!" Mr. Moran lifted the bag and then sniffed it again, "And it reeks of alcohol! You say you weren't welcome at Jake's. The bus takes thirty minutes between his place and ours. Where's the missing hour and a half?"

"I had to walk!"

Mr. Moran crossed his arms over his chest, "And why's that? Tell me, Gia. I'm interesting in hearing your story."

"Dad, I…"

"Tell me your story, Gia," her father tossed her bag to the floor and then looked on with angered interest.

"Joe, getting angry…"

"You're damn right I'm angry," Mr. Moran shouted at his wife. "She's been through a lot, I understand that, Vanessa, but under no circumstances will my daughter play around with drugs!"

"Those aren't mine!" Gia screamed. "I don't know how they got in there, but they aren't mine! I've never…"

"Tell me your story, Gia. Go on. We're all listening."

"Dad, please…"

"No, I want to hear it."

Gia's chin quivered as she looked at her angry father. She could understand why she was so enraged, and would agree with his reaction if the alcohol and the drugs had been hers. But they weren't. She didn't drink, she didn't smoke, she had never been tempted by drugs before. She had no idea how they had gotten into her bag, but they weren't hers.

Her father wouldn't hear it, though. Mr. Moran was a reasonable man, but when he was fired up, all reason disappeared from his head. Now, no matter what she said, she would be the bad kid – the troubled teen.

"Fuck you," she shouted at her father before she got up and stormed out.

"Emma, go with her, please," Mrs. Moran said. Emma got up and ran after her best friend. Mr. Moran shook his head.

"No, I'll go after her. I'll give that daughter of ours a piece of my…"

"Joe, sit down," Mrs. Moran grabbed him by the arm. "I'm just as surprised as you are, but this is no way to handle this."

"Vanessa, she's…"

"I don't care what she's doing. Your method just chased her away. What the hell can we do to help her if she won't come home?"

Mr. Moran huffed as he sat on the bed.

-Megaforce-

Troy's night was getting any better. As soon as his mother got to the hospital, she was whisked away by doctors. She was in a lot of pain, as Troy expected from childbirth, but her screams had become more and more unsettled the closer they got to the hospital. Mr. Burrows had gone in with his wife to comfort her, so Troy was alone in the waiting room, hoping for the best.

He was used to being alone, though it was a different feeling now. He had friends he could call, but he wasn't sure he wanted to bother them with his problems. He wasn't even sure what the problem was. He just had a bad feeling, and the longer he was alone, the worse it got.

He found he couldn't sit any longer and got up to start pacing. He was worried for his mother – worried something would happen to her. She was older, but the pregnancy had been normal. Still, it wasn't unheard of for something to go very wrong at the last minute.

He was also worried for his little brother or sister. He had gotten excited at the idea of having a sibling, and though it would be years before the kid could be much fun, it was an adventure Troy was willing to take. Now, there was a risk that was gone from him. He couldn't lose his mother, but he also couldn't lose his little sibling.

Losing both? That was unthinkable.

"I can hold your hand if you want," Troy heard a little voice ask him and he looked down. A young girl was smiling at him and holding out her hand. Troy took a seat and he looked at the girl.

"You want to hold my hand?"

"Will it make you feel better?"

"Where's your mother?"

"My sister is sick," the girl said. "She ate a peanut."

"I'm sorry."

"Daddy's over there," the girl pointed to a row of seats with a man lying across them, fast asleep. "He worked all day. Do you want me to hold your hand?"

Troy nodded his head and let the little girl take his hand. She sat down beside him.

"I'm Alex. I'm six."

"I'm Troy."

"How old are you, Troy?"

"Seventeen."

"My sister is seven. She's not teen yet."

Troy chuckled, "I hope your sister feels better."

"Me too. I love her so much," Alex smiled. "Tomorrow is my birthday. She was going to play with me all day."

"It sounds like you have a cool sister."

"I think we'll colour," Alex said. "Daddy said she might be too tired to run around all day. I like colouring too. I think we'll do that instead."

"Sounds like a fun compromise."

"Okay," the little girl nodded her head. Troy chuckled.

"What's your sister's name?"

"Cassie. She's seven."

"You told me that."

"Then why did you ask?" Alex shot Troy a confused look. He shook his head.

"You're right, that's my mistake."

"You need to listen more, Troy," Alex said. Then she looked over to the door as a doctor walked out. He went to her father and gently shook him awake. Right behind the doctor, Troy saw his father coming out. He let go of Alex's hand and walked to his dad. Alex ran to hers.

"Made a friend there, Troy?" Mr. Burrows asked. Troy looked up at his dad.

"How bad is it?"

"Your mother's resting."

Troy breathed out a sigh of relief. That was one safe.

"The baby?"

"A girl."

"A… a girl?"

"They're keeping her under observation," Mr. Burrows said, "But it's looking good. Do you want to see her?"

"Yeah," Troy smiled. He was about to follow his father but before he did he looked over his shoulder to check up on Alex. He had let her run off without seeing where exactly she was headed. He looked to where her father had been resting until the doctor came out, but saw Alex wasn't there.

Suddenly, a little hand wrapped around his. He looked down. It was Alex.

"Can you hold my hand?" she asked him. Troy got on one knee and looked at her.

"How is your sister?"

"She's dead."

Troy looked up at Alex's father again and saw him yelling at the doctor. He took Alex in his arms, told his father he would be a minute, and walked her over. When Alex' father saw her in Troy's arms, he reached out to her. He grabbed her, and hugged her tight.

"Do you need anything?" Troy asked the man. He looked at the boy and shook his head.

"It was just an allergic reaction," he growled. "It's not brain surgery! These idiots should be qualified to do both! Idiots! Everyone in here is an idiot!"

"Daddy…"

"I'm sorry, baby," Alex's father gave her another hug and then he looked at Troy, "I'm sorry if she bothered you."

"Not at all," Troy shook his head. Then he reached into the hospital bag he had brought. He pulled out a little stuffed rabbit and gave it to Alex, "Here, a magic bunny. If you really believe, then she'll colour with you tomorrow."

Troy let Alex keep the rabbit and looked at her father, "I'm sorry for your loss."

He gave the man a gentle pat on the shoulder before he turned around and walked back to his father. Mr. Burrows wrapped his arms tightly around his son.

"You're a good man, son."


	7. Ryan Burrows

Emma followed Gia out to the park, where she found the yellow Ranger sitting on a bench by the path. She walked over and took a seat beside her.

"I'm going to miss saying goodbye to the dog," she said. "The owner said he was coming over soon."

"I hate that dog," Gia rolled her eyes. She pulled her knees up to her chest and hugged them close. "Damn mutt got me in trouble."

"He didn't mean to," Emma said and then sighed. "So… is that what the ID is for?"

"What?"

"You had a fake ID in your wallet," Emma said. "When you left your bag at the mountain, I went through it to make sure everything was there. I saw the…"

"Dammit!" Gia cried and looked down the path she had come, "Fuck, he's going to find that piece of shit too."

"Do we need to talk, Gia?"

"I forgot all about that stupid thing," Gia rolled her eyes. "Cliff had me get one when we were dating. It was so that we could get into bars and clubs and stuff."

"And people bought it?"

"We didn't exactly go to high end places. Cliff could only afford so much on daddy's credit card," Gia rolled her eyes. "The people checking IDs usually just checked the picture, made a stupid comment about my ass, and told me to go inside. Half the time, I didn't need it."

"So it was Cliff?"

"I never used that ID to buy alcohol unless it was for him," Gia nodded her head. "I thought I had gotten rid of it as soon as he dumped me but… I must have just forgotten. Now dad's surely going to find it and…"

"Why don't you just tell him that?"

"What, my sob story about how the drugs aren't mine, I don't drink, I just like carrying around empty bottles, and the fake ID's never been used willingly?"

"Yeah."

"You know what my dad's like when it comes to drugs! I'd rather tell mom about my tattoo!"

"The tattoo you shouldn't have? How did you get a tattoo, anyways. You're seventeen."

"I lied to the guy. Can you drop that, Emma?"

"So, you're not doing drugs? You're not drinking? That ID hasn't been used since Cliff?"

"The last time I did drugs or drink, I got taken advantage of," Gia said, "And it's not like I took the drugs or the alcohol intentionally. Why would I risk putting myself through that again? Just when I'm getting better?"

"You know, your dad's just trying to look out for you," Emma put her head on Gia's shoulder. "He was a little scary back at the room, but… well, you know."

"Yeah, I know," Gia nodded her head and sighed, "I don't think it would be smart going back there tonight."

"Where are we going to stay?"

"We?"

"It really should have been a phoenix instead of a tiger," Emma chuckled and nudged Gia's shoulder as she sat up. "I can send your mom a message; she'll want to know where we're staying. They are going to worry, you know."

"Why can't we just stay here?"

"Do you want to meet a real drug dealer?" Emma raised her eyebrow. "Find a new place, Moran. Preferably somewhere with a roof and four walls."

"I've got no money for a place," Gia said. "Dad has my bag, and Jake's stupid step-sister stole the last of my change."

"Jake has a step-sister?"

"Will possibly… maybe… it's a long story."

"How did she steal your change?"

"Discrimination."

"What?"

"Pregnant women shouldn't have to walk."

"What?" Emma was now very confused. Gia looked to her face and chuckled. She wrapped her arms around the pink Ranger.

"It was just a few bucks. It's no big deal. C'mon, Em, let's find a place before it gets really dark."

-Megaforce-

Troy looked down at the cradle that held his newborn sister. He couldn't believe that after all that, both she and his mother were healthy and everything was looking good for the future. He shook his head as he reached in and touched her cheek.

"You're going to be trouble," he smiled at her. The baby slept peacefully. "I guess mom could have bought that pink car seat after all."

"She's beautiful, isn't she?" his father asked as he walked in behind him. Troy looked over his shoulder and nodded his head.

"As beautiful as a baby can get."

"They get cuter," his father promised. "I'm sure she'll have you wrapped around her little fingers before you know it."

"Did you find Alex?" Troy looked up at his father. The older man nodded sadly.

"They're on the floor above us. It's really tragic how something like that can happen. They're asking for an investigation."

"I hope it goes well," Troy said. "Alex was just telling me how much she loved her sister."

"The parents are pretty distraught. They appreciated your kind words, though. They were asking if we would still be here tomorrow."

"Why?"

"Alex wants someone to colour with. You don't need to get involved, son. It's alright if you were to decline. They just thought it might be nice…"

"Dad, the poor girl just lost her big sister," Troy said. "Of course I'll colour with her. We'll still be here tomorrow, won't we?"

"They want to keep an eye on your sister," Mr. Burrows nodded his head. "Speaking of which, your mother and I have decided on a name."

"You have?"

"What do you think about Ryan?"

"Ry… Ryan? For a girl?"

"Yeah, what do you think? It would be a great way to honour him and all he's done for you. It's about time he gets a second chance."

Troy looked down at his little sister. He would never forget the sacrifice Ryan made for him, and had always wanted to do something really special to show him he hadn't been forgotten.

"I like it," Troy smiled. "I'm sure Ryan would too."

"Have you told any of your friends? They're more than welcome to come and visit the new baby. She won't be very entertaining, though."

"Any excuse for me to socialize," Troy rolled his eyes and chuckled. "I'll tell them soon, dad. Why don't we wait until Ryan's at home before we start surrounding her with people?"

Mr. Burrows put his hand on Troy's shoulder and gave it a gentle squeeze before he walked away. Troy looked down at his baby sister with a smile.

"You've got great parents, kid. You're the lucky one."


	8. Parents Aren't Perfect

Jake sat through dinner with his mom and her new boyfriend. It was awkward as hell, mostly because no one knew what to say to each other. The new boyfriend was nervous around his girlfriend's son, Mrs. Holling couldn't think of how to start a conversation with Jake, and Jake didn't want to speak to his mom.

Finally, the new boyfriend looked across the table, "Kid, that girl who came in here. She's yours?"

"She's my girlfriend," Jake nodded his head and he glanced over to his mother. "Gia and I are dating."

"Nice catch, kid," the new boyfriend reached his fist across the table. Jake didn't bump it. He simply shook his head.

"She's not a catch. She's a person," he turned to his mother, "She's a good person."

"I don't want you near her, Jake."

"Mom, she left tonight so we can spend time together. Can't you just let it go?"

"Girls like that will break your heart," his mother shook her head. "Eat your vegetables."

"Gia's not one of those girls. If it doesn't work out, that's fine, but she's not… she's…"

"Relax, Sally," the new boyfriend said, "Jake's still young. He's got a nice piece of ass on his arm, let him have some fun."

"She's not…" Jake bit his tongue and counted to ten in his head.

"Jake can have all the fun he wants," Mrs. Holling rolled her eyes, "But not with someone so…"

"So what, mom?"

Mrs. Hollings looked to her boyfriend, "Gia's gotten two boys in trouble with the police, and sent two men to prison."

"One of them abused her! The other pointed a gun at her! That's not her fault!" Jake cried and he could feel himself really losing his temper with his mother.

"And now one of them is dead," his mother said to him. "She goes off alone with him, and he turns up dead."

"He beat her senseless! He deserved what he got!"

"And I don't want that to happen to my son! That slut is dangerous, Jacob! One she gets what she wants from you…"

"This is why I wanted her here, mom!" Jake screamed as he stood up at the table. "I wanted you to see she's not the girl you've got trapped in your head. She's really sweet, she's caring, she's strong, she's…"

"Trouble, Jacob. She's trouble."

"Sally, let the boy enjoy himself. I'm sure you've raised a boy who is smart enough to avoid trouble," the boyfriend said and he gave Jake a wink, "You tapped that yet?"

"Don't you have a daughter?" Jake cried out, remembering a conversation he had overheard between his mother and the boyfriend. His daughter was supposed to be at the dinner, but had gotten angry and stormed out before he and Gia had arrived. "Would you like it if someone spoke like that about your daughter? Mom, why are you letting him speak this way about another girl?"

"Jake, Carl is a very respectable man! He's taking care of his pregnant daughter when the father ran out on her."

"Shouldn't he anyways?" Jake rolled his eyes. "You both disgust me."

"Jacob, that is no way to speak to…"

"I love Gia, mom," Jake threw his napkin down on the table and glared at his mother, "She's beautiful, she's smart, she's caring, she's tough, and she's just plain awesome! She left here because she wanted me to try and make amends with you! She's trying to help you, in spite of the way you treat her."

"Jacob, that girl…"

"That girl is my girlfriend now. You don't have to like her mom, but you can at least respect her. If you can't even do that, then you don't have a son anymore. C'mon, mom. At least respect her until she proves you right. Then you can say I told you so. Don't I mean more to you than the person I date?"

"I'm your mother, Jacob."

"And you're not a very good one if you don't choose me and if you don't choose to respect the girl I love. So what's it going to be mother? Your pride or your son?"

His mother took a minute to answer, but it was a minute too long. Jake grabbed his bag and looked at the table at the boyfriend.

"Carl Daniels."

"It seems you're perfect for my mother, Mr. Daniels. Take care of her. I sure as hell won't."

With that, Jake stormed off. He wiped his eyes with the back of his wrist as he walked down the driveway. He had been tough on his mother, but he didn't regret his decision.

He just wished Gia had been right. He just wished his mother could have been the person Gia hoped she was. In spite of everything his mother had done to her, in spite of everything people had done to her, Gia had chosen to believe that there was still a little good inside of his mother. He wasn't sure how he was going to tell her she had been wrong.

He messaged his father, asking him to pick him up down the road from his mother's house. He waited on the curb, trying to hide the tears in his eyes until a car pulled up. His father stepped out.

"I knew this was a bad idea, Jake. I didn't say anything, but I knew," his father pulled him into a hug. Jake held him tightly.

"Why did this happen? Mom was… she was never like this."

"She was always worried about the day you started dating," his father told him. "She's scared of losing you to some other girl."

"She wouldn't have… dad, if she had just… why, dad? Why?"

"I don't know." Mr. Holling wrapped his arm around his son and walked him to the car. When they were both inside, he turned and looked over. "So, I hear your mother has a new boyfriend."

"Yeah…"

"It was quick, but good for her."

"You're not angry?"

"I don't want to be involved with anyone who hurts my son and the girl he loves," Mr. Holling said. "The divorce isn't final yet, but as far as I'm concerned, she's not my wife."

Jake sighed and leaned against the car door, "Well, if it helps, the new boyfriend is a real douchebag. She's not upgrading."

"He is? What's his name?"

"Carl Daniels. He kept making these comments about Gia. Rude comments, dad. The kind college morons make."

"Some boys never turn into men," his father shook his head. "Did you eat?"

"Not my vegetables," Jake chuckled. "I knew it would annoy her."

"So, some ice-cream, then?"

"Always, dad," Jake nodded his head and then he looked out the window.

-Megaforce-

When morning came around, Mrs. Moran kept busy by cleaning up the motel room. Because it was four people living in such a small space, the room got messy very quickly. Mr. Moran's fit the night before had not done anything to help. The contents of Gia's bag were still all over the floor. Mrs. Moran picked up the empty bottle of alcohol and the bag of weed. She shook her head and tossed them both away. Mr. Moran was at work. Hopefully he would be calm when he came home, and hopefully without the evidence, he wouldn't blow up again. Gia didn't need it. Even if it did belong to her, she didn't need it.

The door then opened and Emma and Gia walked in. Mrs. Moran stood by the bathroom door and crossed her arms over her chest. She pointed to the bed.

"Sit down. Both of you."

"You got me in trouble too?" Emma whispered in Gia's ear as she sat down next to her best friend. "Thanks a lot."

"I want to talk to you. Both of you, about something really serious."

"Drugs?"

"Gia, that's enough," Mrs. Moran snapped. "Your father has reason to be concerned. You don't understand what drugs and alcohol can do. They almost got me."

"You…"

"Smoked all through high school. Tried nearly everything once," Mrs. Moran nodded her head. "I lied to my parents about it. I liked to Claire about it. I lied to everyone. I was high the night I started dating your father."

"You… you were?"

"High and drunk. Our first date ended in the emergency room. If it hadn't of been for him, I'd be dead."

"Mom…"

"I'm not proud of myself," Mrs. Moran said. "I'm not proud of my past or the decisions I made. Every day, I'm thankful for your father. Every day I'm thankful he saw through the fog and decided to help me. Drugs almost cost me everything, including you."

"Me?" Gia asked and looked to Emma. The pink Ranger shrugged her shoulders. She was also intrigued.

"Quitting wasn't easy. I can't say I came to a full stop right away," Mrs. Moran explained. "When you were just a little girl, your father had gone for work. I was taking care of you. And old friend of mine, a friend from high school, stopped by the house and we… he was a poor influence on me, but I made the wrong decision. He offered me a joint and… I thought it would be okay. It was just weed and I had just put you down for a nap, so it would be a while before I needed to care for you. My friend thought it would be fun to… to play with you, Gia. When we were high, I let him take you from the crib and he… he tied a pillow case around you. He wanted to make a parachute. He tied the pillow case around you and dropped you down from the second floor, over the banister. I said I'd catch you, but…"

"You didn't?"

"Your father came home. He was just in time. He caught you and he got so angry. Gia, this was an anger I never thought I could see in a man. Last night, you got off lucky. You were so lucky."

Mrs. Moran took Gia's hands in hers and looked down at her daughter with tears in her eyes, "Gia, I don't want a story. I don't want to hear a lie. I don't even want to see you get in trouble. I just want the truth. Tell me the truth, and I'm going to help you. By now, you know that's how this works."

"They aren't mine, mom," Gia said. "I don't know how they got into my bag, but they aren't mine. I promise, I've never done drugs."

"What about the alcohol? Gia, drinking can be just as dangerous…"

"I don't drink," Gia shook her head. Then she reached for her bag and pulled out her wallet. She gave her mother the fake ID. "Cliff had this made for me so we could go to bars and clubs together. He made me drink sometimes, and he made me buy him drinks sometimes, but I swear mom, when I called the shots… there was never any drugs or alcohol."

"And this isn't a lie?"

"No."

Mrs. Moran leaned forward and hugged both the girls. "Your father loves you both. He'd do anything to keep you safe. That's all he was trying to do last night, you understand?"

The girls both nodded their heads. Mrs. Moran pulled away.

"Go to the park, or the forest, or the mountains," she said. "Come home after dinner. After I've talked with your father. I'll make sure he's calm before he speaks with you again."

"And you'll tell him it's not mine?"

"I'll tell him it's not yours," Mrs. Moran smiled.

Gia returned the smile before getting up. She grabbed her mountain board. Emma grabbed the helmets and the safety gear. When they got outside and the door was closed, Emma looked over to Gia.

"So… that was… a lot. At least she understands. And that explains your dad's freak out. Could you imagine what would have happened if he hadn't of come home when he did that day? Or if he hadn't of gotten your mother to the hospital in time?"

Gia shook her head. At this moment, she had a lot to be thankful for. At the top of that list was her father.


	9. Good And Bad Parents

To make up for leaving their dinner date at his mother's house, Gia met with Jake at Ernie's. Though they both loved the Brainfreeze greatly, it was not the ideal place for a date. However, it was a simple spot to hang out and talk. Both needed a safe place to let loose. Gia hadn't yet spoken to her father about the alcohol and drugs he found in her bag. He had been too furious the night before to have a calm conversation with her.

Jake wanted somewhere comfortable to tell Gia about what had happened. He knew she wouldn't be happy. He certainly wasn't.

"You go first," both said at once, seeing the other looked like they had something on their mind. Jake was going to insist, but Gia beat him to it, so with a sigh he started to talk.

"So, I had some dinner with mom last night."

"Was she reaching out to you?" Gia asked. Ernie came over with a couple of milkshakes Gia couldn't remember ordering. By now, they had been to the Brainfreeze so often, Ernie knew what they liked. They rarely had to place an order anymore. A simple nod when they walked in the door was enough.

"She was," Jake answered Gia with a sigh, "I do think… I think she has her own idea of what a good mother is. I don't think that idea matches mine."

"Jake…"

"Gia, my mother was saying mean things about you. Every time she got the chance, she'd have to throw in a comment about how much of a slut you are, or how dangerous you are, or how any girl is better for me than you."

Gia looked down at her milkshake. That last one did hurt her. It was a fear she hadn't put much thought into, but she was sure she was going to have to address it at some point. She was worried she wasn't good enough for Jake. He had always been so sweet and kind and patient with her. He had always been there, through everything, even when he didn't need to be. He went out of his way to care for her; he put his own feelings aside for hers. He even faced his fears of hospitals to visit her when she was upset and lonely. She hadn't done anything for him.

Still, she didn't say anything. No matter how she felt, or what his mother said about her, Gia wouldn't stand between Jake and Mrs. Holling. She shook her head.

"I don't care, Jake…"

"Well, I do," Jake reached across the table and he held Gia's hand. "Her comments make me angry. Just thinking about what she thinks about you… I'd never let her speak that way about any girl, much less you."

"That's sweet, Jake, but…"

"I get she doesn't have to like you. Some mothers just don't like their son's girls even long after they've been married, but at least the good mothers, the ones who really care for their sons; don't stand in the way of their happiness. Right now, I want to be with you. If mom really cared about me, she'd let make my own decisions."

"She's just trying to look out for you…"

"But she doesn't have to, does she?" Jake asked. Gia shook her head. She had no intention of ever hurting him. After everything he had done for her, she didn't think wronging him was a thought that would ever cross her mind.

Jake gave her hand a gentle squeeze and smiled, "Last night was it with my mother. Unless she apologizes for the way she's been treating you, I don't want to talk to her again. Dad agrees it's for the best. The trick to dating is making your own mistakes. If you do break my heart, I want it to be because one of us messed up. I don't want mom convincing me to drop an amazing girl like you and then let me live the rest of my life wondering if I made the right decision or not."

"Jake…"

"It's called trust, Gia. It's one of the most important parts of a relationship. Something I'm sure you didn't have with Cliff. I trust that you're going to treat me with respect, and that if this doesn't work out, it's going to be because it wasn't meant to be. I trust you're never going to want to hurt me. Do you feel the same way?"

Gia nodded her head and smiled at Jake. He smiled back.

"There's the look I love to see," he said. He took a sip of his milkshake and then looked back up, "So, what's on your mind? How is motel life with four people?"

"You thought it was cramped in a hotel with just you and your dad?" Gia rolled her eyes, "Try five people and a tiny motel room."

"Five people?"

"Most nights, Jordan's around. He and Emma are practically joined at the hip. Last night, for a couple of hours, there was a big hairy dog."

"A dog?"

"A lost dog. Obviously Emma wanted to keep it until the owner came to pick it up."

"So, people are stepping on each other's toes?"

Gia shook her head, "Actually, no more than usual. But…"

"But…?"

"The walls really start closing in on you when someone gets angry," Gia started to play with her straw and sighed. "Jake, I swear, it wasn't mine."

"What?"

"After I left your mother's house, I went home. I have no idea how they got into my bag, but Marmaduke managed to sniff out a bag of weed. Dad went through my stuff, found it and an empty bottle of liquor."

"Gia…"

"They aren't mine," Gia shook her head. "A tattoo, just the one, that's it. That's as far as I'm going, I swear."

"So how did they end up in your bag?" Jake asked and Gia saw his tone wasn't accusing at all. He believed her. She gave him another smile.

"I don't know."

"You packed you bag before coming to my place, right?"

"I put in the box of chocolates for your mother as a host gift," Gia nodded her head.

"And you remember exactly what's in the bag."

"I swear, there were no drugs or… you know, I did have to take the bus home."

"Yeah, I figured. You think someone…"

"I didn't end up taking the bus home," Gia shook his head. "Your stupid step-sister stole my bus ticket."

"My step-sister? How did you…?"

"She saw me leaving your mother's house and we talked. We were both waiting for the bus," Gia said. "I set my bag down next to her when you sent me the text. Now that I think about it, the bag did feel a little different when I picked it up again."

"It… did? How much weed was in your bag?"

"Not a lot," Gia shook her head, "But the bottle… it must have shifted stuff around inside," Gia clenched her fists tightly around her milkshake container, "Your family does hate me."

"You're accusing Rebecca?"

"Who?"

"That was her name. I heard Carl say it once last night while he and mom were making dinner. You think she…?"

"The bitch stole my bus ticket," Gia nodded.

"How do you know she stole your bus ticket?"

"I had enough money for my ticket. She strolled right in before me. When I paid, the driver said I shouldn't expect a pregnant woman to walk and asked me to pay for two tickets. When I couldn't give enough money, he kicked me out."

"He did…? Gia, why didn't you tell me? I could have given you a lift."

"I walked home."

"Alone?!"

"Yeah. It's the first time in a while I've done that without consequences," Gia smiled, which reassured Jake that everything was okay. Cliff was gone, but that didn't keep him from worrying that some other guy would push his luck. Gia was a tough girl. She was strong and smart, and she knew how to defend herself. All of those were things about her that he loved. However, she was still fragile. If a guy pushed too hard, Gia was sure to break. All she needed was a wrong place and time for her recovery to go backwards.

"There's really no point in going after her now, though," Jake said when he saw Gia was ready to get up and find Rebecca. "I'd rather not call mom to talk to her idiot boyfriend."

"Idiot boyfriend?" Gia frowned. "Alright, Rebecca wasn't singing his praises, but she was just a teen. We aren't exactly known parent lovers. Why do you hate him so much?"

"Just… he said some things," Jake shrugged his shoulders. He tried to end it there, but he saw Gia wanted more. He sighed, "He kept congratulating me for scoring you, and making comments about whether or not you and I have… you know. He's just a dick, and if he's the guy my mom chooses, she's obviously got this dating thing all wrong."

Jake smiled at Gia, "Another reason I know she's completely wrong about you."

"I've still got to find a way to explain the drugs to my dad," Gia leaned back in the bench and sighed. "Mom's going to talk to him. She believes me, but I still think he's going to give me a hard time."

"A hard time like he's being a hard ass?" Jake asked, "Or a hard time because he loves you and wants what's best for you?"

Gia couldn't help another little smile, "Definitely the second one."

"So then what's the problem?"

"I guess I don't have one," Gia nodded her head. Then she grabbed her bag and got up, "Milkshakes are great, but I know an awesome pizza place."

"Mmm, pizza," Jake said as he rubbed his stomach. He took Gia's hand and followed her out the door.


	10. Great Children

When Gia walked into the motel that evening, she quickly found a note on the desk from her mother and Emma. They were out to dinner and would be back later. Gia knew why they were gone, and as the shower turned off in the bathroom, she felt her stomach turning.

Her father was calm by now, and she knew everything would be okay, but she didn't want the lecture. She was a good girl and drugs weren't her thing. She had never been tempted by them, and after hearing the ordeal her mother suffered through, Gia wanted to stay as far away from them as possible. However, she knew her father had to get this talk off his chest. If speaking to her would reassure him that she was okay, she would do it.

So she sat on the bed and waited for her father to step out of the shower. It wasn't too long. There wasn't a lot of room in the motel bathroom, which kept every member of the Moran family from spending much time in the bathroom. He emerged in his pyjamas and looked over to his bed. He saw his daughter waiting for their talk and he sighed.

"Your mother spoke to me," he said. Gia nodded her head.

"Dad, I promise, those weren't mine."

"She made me understand," he sat down beside her and put his hand on her leg. He took in a deep breath, "You're my whole world, Gia. At night, sometimes, I can't sleep I worry about you so much."

"There haven't been a lot of monsters…"

"In general, Gia," Mr. Moran shook his head, "In general, I worry about you. From the moment your mother told me we were having a baby, I worried. Before you were born, I worried about whether or not I would make a good, or even passable father. After you were born, I worried I would somehow screw up. I worried you would grow up and hate me, I worried I wouldn't be there for you. When you started school, I worried you wouldn't succeed. You were such a bright girl, but all it takes is one bad moment to ruin everything. I worried I would accidentally crush your dreams. I worried I'd let you down. I worried you wouldn't make friends. And, stupid me, thought the worrying would stop as you got older, but it only got worse. I started to worry about the decisions you were making, and if they were the right ones. I worried about how involved I should be in your life. If I'm too involved, I'm keeping you from growing, if I'm not involved enough, I could lose you. I worry about what college you'll go to, or if you'll even go to college. I worry I won't have the money to send you to your dream school, or help you get started in life. I'm worried you won't find the job you love, and you'll be stuck working in a stuffy office like me. Being a father is the best thing that's happened to me, and nothing makes me happier than you, but I worry so much, Gia, because I have less and less control over the things you do."

Mr. Moran moved his hand and put both on his thighs. He rubbed them up and down as he tried to keep himself from getting too overwhelmed and emotional. He was lucky he had a daughter like Gia. She was a daughter he bragged about at office parties. His daughter was beautiful and smart, and tough as nails when she needed to be, but also soft and caring. He didn't want anything to ruin that. He had seen what drugs could do, and it was never good.

"When you were a baby, I could take you in my arms and hold you and that was it. I knew I was doing a good job when you stopped crying, or when you were smiling and laughing. It was hard, but it was easier. I could do everything for you. Now I can't, and so when I see you're coming home smelling of alcohol and you've got a bag of weed…"

"You get scared."

"Your mother told me she talked to you about her… use. Gia, every day I'm glad I didn't lose your mother to drugs. You don't understand how lucky I was to have everything work out the way it did. When your mother was sent to hospital on our first date, I considered ending things."

"I can't blame you," Gia said. "I thought no goodnight kiss was a bad way to end a date."

Mr. Moran chuckled. He wrapped his arm around his daughter's shoulders, "Something told me to stay, and I listened. I listened, and I got so lucky your mother turned herself around for me. I got so lucky to have found a woman who loved and cared for me enough to want to be the best she could be. I got so lucky, Gia, I feel I've used up all that luck. I'm not going to get lucky again, and I'll be damned if that misfortune hurts you. I know you understand what I expect of you, but I also know you're getting older. Pretty soon, your life will be completely in your hands. I'll always be there for you, Gia, but if you don't make smart decisions, it's going to be harder for both of us to be happy."

"I love you, dad," Gia hugged her father tight and she felt him wrap his arms around her tightly. She felt so fortunate to have a father like him.

"I'm sorry I assumed the worst of you," he said to her and kissed her cheek. "I was scared, but it wasn't right of me."

"You meant well," Gia smiled at her father and then bit her lip, "So… I'm kind of hungry. Mom and Emma might think this'll be a while so…"

"Daddy daughter date?" Mr. Moran's face lit up. It had been years since he had been on a father daughter date with Gia. When she started high school, it seemed there was not enough time.

"Daddy daughter date," Gia nodded.

-Megaforce-

Troy's mother was fast asleep in her hospital bed. Her labour hadn't been too long, but it seemed to have exhausted her quite a bit. She was out and it would take a hurricane to wake her back up again.

Fortunately, that left Troy with some quality time with his little sister. Though the doctors wanted to keep a close eye on her because she was a few weeks premature, she was very strong and healthy, and they thought it best to keep her close to her mother. This meant Troy got the chance to hold little Ryan for the first time.

He had picked her up on his own. When they knew they were expecting a baby, Mrs. Burrows had taught Troy, using a doll, the proper way to lift and hold a newborn. Troy was an older brother by almost two decades, and while he had been promised the duties of parenthood would never fall on him, his responsibilities as an older brother meant a lot of time alone with his sister. He needed to know to care for her, and that started with holding her correctly.

He was a natural at it. She had stirred a bit when he first lifted her, but she settled in his arms and fell right to sleep, just like their mother. Troy found himself captivated as he stared at her. She was still a little too wrinkly to be completely adorable, but he couldn't imagine anything more perfect.

When he found out his mother had been expecting a baby, he had been deeply worried about what that meant for him not as a brother, but as a Ranger. In his hands, he held the most vulnerable thing on the planet – a newborn. Ryan was so small and helpless that unless she had parents who would care for her, she would die. She couldn't fend for herself, there was no way. She could barely even open her eyes. Although she was strong, she was so fragile.

Troy found himself worrying again for her, but not in the same way. His team had assured him they would keep her safe, but Troy found the stakes of his war against the mutants and the Warstar were rising. He had always wanted to live in a better world, with less violence and more peace, but that dream was even bigger. Ryan deserved a chance at a happy life. He didn't want her to have to suffer through wars and crimes and violence.

"I have a secret to tell you," he whispered. She was fast asleep, just like Mrs. Burrows, but Troy thought he would tell his little sister now. He wanted to be honest with her. He wanted her to always feel safe with him. He wanted to protect her. "Your big brother is the red Ranger. I know it sounds cool, and one day, a few years from now, you and your friends might be pretending to be Power Rangers, but it's not as amazing as it sounds. I try to look on the bright side, and I know I have to keep fighting, no matter what, but sometimes, I want to quit. Sometimes I think it's all for nothing. I'm ancient, compared to you, but I'm just a kid, I can't do much."

He stroked his little sister's cheek and smiled, "But I won't give up. I promise, you're going to grow up in a beautiful world – one you'll be proud to call home."

Suddenly, his mother shifted. Troy kissed Ryan's forehead and then looked over. His mother opened her eyes and smiled at him.

"What are you doing?"

"Just bonding," Troy chuckled. "Did you hear any of that?"

"No, why?"

"I was telling her how amazing you were," Troy said, it was a lie, but it wasn't untrue. His mother had been great with him, he was sure she would be just as good, maybe better, for Ryan. He wanted the best for his little sister."

"She's got an amazing older brother, too," Mrs. Burrows said. "I've never seen a teenage boy hold a baby so… softly."

"I wasn't thrilled when I heard it was a sister," Troy admitted with a smile as he looked down at the little girl, "But she's growing on me."

"I know you've always wanted a little brother or sister," Mrs. Burrows chuckled. She sat up and took her daughter in her arms. "When you were little, you always asked if we could go to the store and buy one."

"What did I know?" Troy shrugged his shoulders.

"I always knew you would be a good big brother. You had that… quality about you that would just… I knew it would help you thrive to have someone to teach. I'm just sorry it took so long."

"It's perfect timing, mom," Troy shook his head and smiled at his family. "I'm going to be the best big brother."

"You're already the best son," his mother touched his cheek and gave him a warm smile.


	11. New Siblings

_Author's Note: Just a reminder, one more week until my vacation. During that time, I will not be able to access the internet, and therefore will not be able to post chapters likely until my return a week or so later. Again, I thank you all in advance for your patience._

Troy took time away from his sister and his parents to head down to Ernie's Brainfreeze. He had called his friends, saying he had to arrange an important meeting for the team and Jordan. It had been a few days now and he wanted them to know his little sister had been born. She wasn't yet strong enough to be out in public or have a bunch of teenagers handling her and cooing about how adorable she was, so Troy had taken a few pictures to bring over. The news of his baby sister would be enough to excite his friends.

When he walked into the Brainfreeze, he saw all his friends sitting around a table, each with a smoothie in their hands. When he walked in, they all groaned. Troy couldn't blame them. Usually, when he called everyone together like this, it was for a training session. He sat down at the table and shook his head.

"We're not training, I just have some news," he took out his phone and put it in the middle of the table. "Ryan Burrows."

"Dude, he's pretty cute," Jake said as he took the phone and got a closer look at the picture, "In that strong, muscular way. You know."

"She," Troy chuckled, and he was sure he would be doing that for a while. Ryan was generally a boy's name, and at this age, it was impossible to tell a baby boy from a baby girl.

Emma and Gia snatched the phone from Jake, "Finally, another girl."

"What do you mean, finally?" Jordan asked, nudging his girlfriend gently. Emma looked up at him.

"Hello, we're extremely outnumbered," she gestured around the table. "There are twice as many boys at the table as there are girls. You guys are great, but you're all…"

"Guys," Gia said and rolled her eyes. She turned to Jake, who was slurping up the last bit of his smoothie through his straw. She kicked him under the table.

"Wasn't your mom not due for another few weeks?" Noah asked Troy as the phone came around and he looked at the picture. Troy nodded.

"She gave us a bit of a scare. Mom was in a lot of pain for a while, and dad couldn't stop panicking the entire way to the hospital, but the doctors say they haven't found anything wrong with Ryan. She's just messing around with us, I guess."

"You've got a handful, then," Jordan said. "I've got two sisters, and both of them gave mom a hard time in utero. Now, I love them both, but they're a real pain in the ass, sometimes."

"Well, congratulations," Noah held up his smoothie. "You're in for a bunch of sleepless nights and smelly diapers."

"I don't mind," Troy shook his head, "I want to be there for her. My parents are going to be great, but I really want to be the best big brother. I know what the world is like. I know how mean it can get. Mom and dad named her after by biggest hero, and even though he was the greatest person I've ever known, the world still swallowed him up and spit him out."

"Yeah, people suck," Gia nodded her head. She looked at the picture of the little girl and then smiled at Troy, "Nothing's going to happen to her. She's got five Rangers looking out for her."

"And me," Jordan said.

"Yeah, and that thing," Gia pointed lazily to Jordan.

"Hey!"

"Thanks, guys. It means a lot."

"So, when can we meet her?" Emma asked. Troy shrugged his shoulders.

"Mom wants to hold off on visitors for a while. She says it's too much work. As soon as possible, though, I promise."

The bell over the door rang as another customer walked into the store. The group looked over, just out of curiosity and then returned back to looking at the pictures Troy had taken, except for Gia. She set her smoothie down and walked over to the counter, beside the girl who had walked in. She sat down on the stool next to her.

"Never seen you come in here before."

"What's it to you?" the girl snapped and then looked down the bar to Ernie, who was washing out glasses, "What does it take to get some service around here?"

"Manners, maybe?" Gia said, and she held her hand up to tell Ernie not to come over. "Maybe not stuffing other people's bags with drugs and booze. It's really bad for the baby, you know that, right?"

The girl looked over, recognized Gia immediately from their encounter on the bus bench a few nights before, and suddenly took off. Though she was pregnant, she could run pretty quickly. Gia didn't hesitate to run off after her.

"What the…" Jake frowned when he saw Gia taking off after a pregnant teen. The others were just as confused.

Emma dropped her head on a table, "I'm getting her a leash. This is getting ridiculous."

"Maybe we should see what's up," Troy suggested and the others agreed as they got up from the table and followed Gia out into the mall.

A little ways off, Gia kept her sights on the pregnant teen. It seemed the expanding stomach did little to slow her down. Fortunately, Gia was much faster and more agile than most teens even without the stomach. When the pregnant girl tried knocking over a few signs to slow Gia down, she leapt over them.

She managed to catch up to the girl by the fountains, and grabbed her by the arm. The girl pulled and tugged but Gia's grip was tight.

"Do you have any idea how much trouble you got me in?" Gia screamed. The girl didn't say anything. Instead, she grabbed Gia and started to push her towards the fountain.

"I don't care about you," she said. "If my dad found me with those he'd freak!"

"I know!" Gia cried, and spun herself and the girl around so she wouldn't fall into the fountain. She let go of the girl, and moved away. By now it was obvious she would be able to catch up again if the girl tried to run again, "What do you think my dad did when he found it? You think we smoked together? You think we shared a drink?"

"Whoa, hey," Jake and the other arrived and Jake gently grabbed Gia's arm. He pulled her further away from the girl while the others surrounded her. Though Gia did look like the hot-head, her friends knew she didn't have a temper that meant she would explode for no good reason. They weren't sure what had happened, but the girl had to have done something to Gia. They weren't going to let her go without a little explanation. "What's going on here?"

"Jake, meet your step-sister," Gia growled, and pulled away from Jake, "This is the girl I met after I left your mother's place."

"You're Rebecca?" Jake asked and looked down at the stomach, "Carl didn't mention that."

"And your mom didn't mention you look like even more of a loser in person," Rebecca scoffed and rolled her eyes. "Great, and now I'll have to live happily ever after with this idiot."

Gia lunged for Rebecca again. Jake and Emma held her back.

"Don't worry. Mom and I aren't exactly on speaking terms," Jake said. Then he gestured to Gia, "What did you do to piss her off? Her bad side isn't where you want to be."

"It's not my fault she's a sucker."

"I set my bag down for a second and she decided to stuff it with drugs," Gia growled.

"It was just a little weed and one bottle of booze. By the way, I want that back. I was holding it for a friend and he's asking for it."

"Yeah, right," Gia shook her head. She crossed her arms over her chest, "You're fucking up your kid, you know that, right?"

"I'm not smoking or drinking," Rebecca shook her head, "Please, I'm not an idiot. The last thing I want is to be stuck with some re…"

"Watch what you say," Troy growled. "At this stage, your baby can hear you."

"Like I give a fuck," Rebecca rolled her eyes and turned to Troy. They stared at each other for a moment. Noah saw this, and he noticed something strange between them. He had always been good with faces.

"You know, this is probably a really bad time," he said, "but you two could be siblings."

"Noah," Jake smacked his friend in the arm.

"No, no, I see it too," Jordan said. "Holy shit, that's uncanny. You two don't know each other, right?"

Troy frowned. He had moved around so much, he couldn't remember all the names and the faces of the people he had met. "I'm Troy Burrows."

"Good for you, Troy Burrows."

"She's Rebecca," Jake said, when he got the impression Rebecca wouldn't introduce herself. "Rebecca Daniels. My mom is dating her dad."

"Engaged now," Rebecca grumbled. "You're invited to the wedding. Your little slut isn't welcome. Your mother's words, not mine."

Rebecca then glared at Gia and scoffed, "I'd have used something stronger."

"Don't think I'm afraid to hit a pregnant kid," Gia growled. "I can add it to my bucket list now."

"Whatever."

"Daniels?" Troy asked and he looked at Jake, "And you said… you mentioned Carl?"

"Yeah. Her dad is Carl Daniels."

"I… I… Mom, when she… when she bumped into my… you're…"

"What?" Emma looked between Troy and Rebecca, "Do you know each other?"

"She's my sister."

"They grow up so fast," Jordan joked, but the fun didn't last for long. When Rebecca heard she was Troy's sister, she turned to him. Her eyes suddenly filled up with rage.

"You ruined my life!" she screamed and grabbed him aggressively by the shirt. Troy did nothing to fight back. Unlike Gia, hitting a pregnant teen wasn't on his bucket list. Unfortunately, that only allowed Rebecca to take things further. With a powerful fist, she punched Troy in the eye, sending him stumbling back with what was sure to be a nasty bruise on his face.

"That's it, you little shit," Gia lunged for Rebecca, but she was held back by Jake and Jordan, while Noah and Emma went to check up on Troy. Rebecca smirked teasingly at Gia before walking away.

"Burn in hell, all of you!"

"I'll kill her," Gia growled as Jake stood in front of her to calm her down, "I'm going to kill that bitch, I swear…"

"Let it go," Jake shook his head, "Everything's fine. Your dad understood, right?"

Gia pulled away from Jake and took a seat on the edge of the fountain. She held her head in her hands. Jake sat down beside her and put his hand on her back.

"She may be my step-sister, but remember, I don't want anything to do with mom. We never have to see her, ever again."

"She's my sister, too," Troy said as he nursed his eye. He would have a hard time explaining this to his parents, "I kind of want to know what happened."

"Leave me out of it, then," Gia said as she got up and stormed off. Jake tried to go after her, but as soon as he caught up to her, she pushed him away. "Leave me alone."

Troy and the others joined Jake as he watched Gia walk off. Troy put a hand on his shoulder.

"I'm not sure what happened between you and your mother, but I have a huge favour to ask you."

"You want to meet your real dad?" Jake asked. Troy nodded his head.

"If it's not too much trouble."

"Yeah… whatever," Jake said. "I've got a wedding invitation to decline anyways."


	12. The Other Family

With Jake's mother's address in hand, Troy double checked he had the right place before ringing the door. He waited nervously. This wasn't a pleasant visit at all. He was here to talk to the man who walked out on him and his mother years ago. He was here to talk to the man who cheated on his mother while they were married. He was here to talk to the man who broke his mother's heart and left her alone to raise his son.

He was here to talk to the man who let his problems victimize his son. Troy was happy with his family as it was now, and he loved his step-father like a real father, but he had always wondered how things would be different if his birth father had stuck around.

The door opened as Jake's mother answered it. Troy introduced himself and then he asked to speak to his father. Carl was in ear shot in the kitchen, and stepped out in the hallway. He asked Mrs. Holling, soon to be Mrs. Daniels, if they could speak privately. Of course, knowing her fiancé had a complicated past he needed to sort, Mrs. Holling stepped aside and let the boys speak in the living room.

Troy let out a sigh as he looked at his father. He shook his head, "I just want to make it clear you're not my father. You will never be my father."

"I get what I did was bad," Carl answered and leaned back into the couch. "I wasn't thinking, Troy. The night I left… your mother and I were already having problems…"

"Problems caused by you cheating on her?"

"She didn't know at the time."

"Oh, but it did wonders for the relationship, didn't it? Don't try to blame what you did to me on your marriage. The day you left my mom was also the day you left me. I was just a kid! I thought I had done something."

Carl shook his head, "I'm sorry, Troy…"

"Sorry doesn't begin to cover it. Sorry never will. But I want to know why. Why did you leave? Most parents, when they get divorced, don't just take off to a new city or town or whatever…"

"I was having an affair. It did start a few years before I left your mother. At first it was fun, it was risky, it was dangerous. She was a woman I worked with, so I could keep my lives separated. But then she told me she was pregnant."

Carl looked over at Troy and sighed, "This is going to sound ridiculous, but I couldn't be an absent father. I also couldn't tell your mother what I had done. It would crush her. I tried all I could to provide for you and for her. I managed, but barely. The woman I was with, eventually had enough and forced me to make a decision. If I wanted to stay with her, and with my daughter, I'd have to commit myself completely. She wanted to move out of town and start a life together the right way. Things with your mother were already so bad, I knew it was over, and this woman was offering me what sounded like a good deal. I didn't think about you, Troy, I just knew I had to get away."

"That's the lamest excuse ever. So you chose your daughter over your son?"

"I had to make a choice. At the time, all that processed was that if I didn't make a move to follow the woman I loved – yes, over time, I grew to love her – then I'd lose my daughter. I never thought that by doing so, I would lose my son. When it dawned on me that I had abandoned you, it was too late to turn back. I had already left."

"But you never regretted it enough to try," Troy rolled his eyes. "Face it, if mom hadn't of bumped into you at the store, you'd have never reached out to me. You found out where I lived on the internet. It's not like I've been impossible to track down all these years!"

"Troy…"

"I don't care for your bullshit excuses. You turned out to be the worst father I could have, so I'm glad you stepped aside so a real man could step up. My dad's been taking care of me and mom since the day he met us."

"I'm so sorry."

"This isn't even the reason I'm here. I ran into her. I ran into Rebecca. She's my sister."

"Yes."

"She says I screwed up her family. Obviously something happened between you and her mother if you're dating Jake's mom. So what did you do? Why is my sister so messed up?"

"She's not messed up. She's just a little bit of a handful…"

"She's messed up. You've messed up another kid. What happened?"

"Troy…"

"She's my sister, and unlike you, I not going to let my issues with her father victimize her. What did you do?"

"I never told her mother about you," Carl looked down at the floor. "Her mother and I met at the office, like I said, and I wasn't wearing my ring. She started to flirt with me and I just… I couldn't pass it up. She seemed genuine, and so I doubted she would help me cheat on my wife if she knew. I just… kept up the charade. Then when your mother and I started having problems, I thought I could keep going until the divorce. She backed me into a corner with her insistence on giving me a second chance to be a good father and boyfriend and so I just left. I thought I left everything behind with me, and telling her I was married wasn't necessary. Eventually the divorce went through, I proposed to her, we got married, and that was it. A couple of years ago, she found out. An old friend recognized me and asked about your mother. It turned into a hurricane after that."

"And what, she left?"

"Rebecca had school in the morning. She was already asleep when her mother and I fought, or so, we thought. Her mother, in anger, stormed out of the house. She had no intention of leaving Rebecca behind, she just needed space to breathe and calm down. It was dark; our house wasn't in the best neighbourhood. I got a call that morning telling me her body had been found in a dumpster."

Troy got up. He had heard all he needed to hear. Without saying goodbye, he stormed out of the house. He understood Rebecca's rage a lot more now. He just hoped he would be able to bump into her again. He wanted to help.

-Megaforce-

After leaving the mall, Gia made a trip home, grabbed her gear for Mountain Boarding, and went to the mountains.

She thought she was getting better. She thought she knew better. She thought she was stronger.

But a kid had played her for a fool. A kid had been able to see she was just another idiot and used her. It wasn't the same way Cliff had, but she had still been a sucker. It hurt, that even now that she felt better and stronger about herself, people could still only see her as something they could use. Jake's mother still believed she was nothing more than a slut. Jake's step-father, and Troy's father, apparently, could only talk about her body and encourage Jake to get as much action out of her as he could. She could hear the boys around the neighbourhood or at Ernie's making comments about her, and she saw the way they looked at her. She even saw the way they looked at Jake, with jealousy in their eyes. They wanted to be the one to conquer Gia Moran.

She knew she was just a beginner when it came to Mountain Boarding, but she was tired of the little slope. With Jake, she had gone down the more challenging runs a couple of times. She had taken a few nasty falls, and was still sporting a few scrapes as proof, but the only way to get better was to keep trying. She walked up to the top and looked down at the trail. It seemed easy enough.

"Hey, babe," she heard over her shoulder and turned around to see two boys coming her way. She had seen them on the mountain before. They were regulars, and they were very good at the sport. She had to wonder what they were doing on this hill. While it was challenging, it was still below their skill level.

She wondered, but she wouldn't ask. She strapped on her helmet and put a foot on her board. One guy grabbed her arm.

"You're not here with that kid?"

"My boyfriend's not coming," Gia growled. "Let go, before I make you."

"You know, I love a little bark. If there's trouble in paradise, you can use me all you want to show him what he's missing."

"Hey, don't hog all the fun," the other one nudged his friend. "We can both make the scrawny kid jealous. You know, babe, if I had you…"

"You don't," Gia ripped the first's hand from her arm and placed her second foot on the board. Then with a little hop she started to roll down to the bottom of the hill.

"We'll meet you down there," the two boys said and then suddenly took off, speeding faster than Gia down the trail. When they passed her, they started doing tricks – likely to show off. Gia ignored them, and decided she would turn down a second path that opened up. She wouldn't meet these boys at the bottom. She didn't want to see them again. She knew what they wanted from her. She knew what they saw her as. She didn't want any part of it.

She rolled down the hill, and felt she was doing really well, until she saw a turn come up that was too tight for her skill level. She couldn't stop in time and so dove off her board. It shot off the trail and over a little drop. It was nothing too steep. She knew because she fell over with it.

The mountainside and gravity were not her friends. She rolled over the short drop, hit the ground hard, and then continued to roll until a tree stopped her fall. She let out a cry of pain and grabbed her arm. In the drop, she had landed on it.

-Megaforce-

Troy didn't know Rebecca very well. She was his sister, but until recently he had no idea she existed. All he knew about her was that she and Gia didn't get along, she would be Jake's step-sister, and she was pregnant.

He had bumped into his father in a maternity store, so Troy decided he would try his luck. It was a long-shot, but he couldn't think of anywhere else she would go. He went back to the mall and started to make his way to the baby store.

That was where he saw her. Well, she wasn't quite in the store. She was down the hall beside the store. It was a darker hallway, used only for the public washrooms. It was out of the way of the crowd, and unless it was a real emergency, no one traveled down this hallway. Rebecca was in the hallway, though, with a man twice her size. From a distance, it looked as though they were arguing. Troy walked over, and he could hear the yelling from the man. He was demanding money from her. Troy pulled out his wallet and offered the man a couple of twenties.

"Does that cover it?"

The man didn't say anything. He simply walked off. Rebecca turned to Troy and rolled her eyes.

"You just paid for drugs, you know that, right?"

"Rebecca…"

"The drugs your friend lost."

"You mean the ones you planted on her? Did you really think you would get those back?"

Rebecca scoffed. Troy grabbed her arm.

"I talked to our dad. I know why you're angry."

"You don't. Whatever he said, he's just trying to make himself look good. That's why he's doing all this. He just wants to look good."

"I know what happened to your mother. I'm sorry," Troy looked at his sister. "You have every right to be angry with him. And I understand why you're mad at me."

"Fuck off. We've got the same dad, but that doesn't make us family…"

"Rebecca, please," Troy grabbed her by the arm gently and spun her around so she was facing him, "You're just a kid…"

"Sixteen."

"You're just a kid, you've got a baby on the way, and you're playing around with drugs and alcohol…"

"I'm not playing around with them…"

"Possession is a crime! Not to mention, the guys you're involved with who do use them aren't exactly the most reliable people. I don't think that brute I just paid off wanted to wait a few days for you to scrape up some money."

"What do you want?"

"To help."

"You don't know me."

"You're my sister."

"Screw you."

"Dad hurt us both."

"Because he sucks."

"Rebecca, please. I want to help you."

"What do you really want? I don't owe you anything. I never asked for that money. Besides, I don't need help."

"I can't even tempt you with time away from dad? Come by my place for dinner, at least."

"Oh yeah, so you and your mom can both laugh at how fucked up the other family is. I'm sure it feels real good knowing your dad's life only got worse when he left, and he's screwed up everything and everyone he left you for."

"I hate dad," Troy nodded his head, "but I'm so sorry he let his problems hurt you. Please, Rebecca, I don't want to laugh, I just want to help."

Rebecca looked up at Troy and then sighed. She nodded her head and walked home with him. She didn't want to go back home to her father and his fiancée, and she didn't have enough money to buy something to eat. At the very least, she could get a warm meal out of the other family.


	13. Grounded Ranger

Rebecca felt out of place, but was more than welcome at the Burrow's household. The dinner was nothing spectacular, because Mrs. Burrows had just come home with the new baby and didn't have the energy to make dinner. Still Rebecca enjoyed her meal.

Troy didn't tell his parents who she was right away, but as the night progressed they did figure it out. Rebecca thought, the moment they found out who she was, they would kick her out, but they did nothing of the sort. They made her feel at home, continued to ask her gentle questions about herself, and they even let her hold baby Ryan as practice for when her own baby would be born. By the end of the night, they had offered Rebecca a place to stay in their guest bedroom. Troy told his parents she was angry with her father, without going into the details of why, and they said she was more than welcome to stay the night.

As she pulled down the blankets to the guest bedroom, she heard a knock at the door. When she turned around, Troy walked in. He closed the door behind himself and looked at her with a little smile.

"Are you okay?"

"Your family is nice," Rebecca whispered. "I thought for sure they would hate me."

"You didn't do anything wrong," Troy shook his head. "My parents are pretty cool that way."

"Your sister's pretty cute," Rebecca said. "I wanted a girl, but I was told I was having a boy."

"Are you going to keep him?"

"Dad said I have to," Rebecca shrugged her shoulders, "I don't know what I want to do. I'm only sixteen."

"Do you mind me asking about the father?"

Rebecca shook her head. Troy had been so nice to her, in spite of everything. The least she could do to show she was grateful was answer a few of the obvious questions. So far, he hadn't tried to pressure her into answering anything too personal.

"It was just a fling with some guy from school," she said. "I'm mad at dad for what he did to mom and thought I would get back at him by sleeping around. He hated it, and I hated him, so it seemed right."

"I guess the father isn't in the picture, right?"

"He wants nothing to do with the baby, and I want nothing to do with him. It was just a fling. I don't want to have to get married to some idiot."

"You shouldn't have to. Besides your dad, do you have anyone else to help you?"

"I'll find someone, I guess."

Troy shook his head. He walked over to the dresser, where Rebecca had left her phone. He put in his number.

"I rarely answer my phone," he said, "but if you ever need me, send me a text and I'll be over as fast as I can. I know little to nothing about taking care of babies, but with a little sister in the house, I think I could learn a few things ahead of time."

"Thanks," Rebecca whispered and then shook her head. She frowned at Troy, "Why are you being so nice? I blamed you for ruining my life, but I'm not stupid or selfish. I know what I did to your family."

"Our dad fucked up, not you," Troy shook his head. "And besides, I learned a lot about family from my dad. If a complete stranger can care for and love a boy he's got no connections to like his own son, I sure as hell can step up to the plate and be a good uncle to my nephew. If you'll let me."

"You really want to be there for me?"

"It's what family does. We support each other, no matter what," Troy smiled. "Tomorrow I was thinking of going to Ernie's. Probably to meet up with the others. If you come with me, we can explain everything. My friends are pretty cool, and you might not like your dad or his fiancée, but your step-brother is pretty cool."

"And you're really his friend?"

"Yeah, this is weird for me too," Troy chuckled. "What do you say? Want to join me tomorrow?"

"I've got nothing better to do. Besides, I think I've got some apologizing to do."

"You want to apologize?"

"I know how I've been acting. I know how people see me. That's not who I really am, you know. Before my life got really fucked up, I used to be a good kid. Now I'm just some messed up, father hating, pregnant slut."

"That's what people see, but that's not who you are," Troy shook his head. He walked to the door, "Goodnight, Rebecca."

"Goodnight, Troy."

-Megaforce-

Mrs. Moran was only one more scare away from a heart attack, and she was certain the next time she stepped foot into a hospital she wouldn't be walking out.

She had gotten a call from the cabin in the mountains. Since peoples, especially young adults and teens, loved to practice extreme sports of all kinds along the trails in the mountains, the city had workers there to rent out equipment and supervise the activity on the mountain. No one wanted to get hurt, but when accidents happened, someone needed to be around to help.

The call from the cabin was in regards to Gia. According to the worker on the phone, Gia had been found far off the trail after having taken a fall, and was at the hospital. She was okay, but she was being treated for a broken arm.

Gia was in the waiting room when Mrs. Moran arrived. She had been looked at, and had a cast to her elbow. Her arm was immobilized in a sling. The doctors had taken care of her, but the hospital couldn't discharge her without a parent or guardian.

First thing Mrs. Moran did when she saw her daughter was hug her. Above all, she was relieved Gia was okay. When she pulled away from her daughter, the frown came out.

"For starters," she said and Gia knew she was in for a long night, "Why the hell would you go Mountain Boarding _by yourself_!"

"I wasn't thinking…"

"Obviously! Do you understand how dangerous that is? Do you have any idea what could have happened to you?"

"Yes."

"I mean, you're just a beginner! You're still just learning! You don't have the skill or the experience to handle anything more than a straight slope! And what about falls? One nasty wipe out is all it takes for you to be seriously hurt, and who would be around to help you?"

"It's not like there was no one on the …"

"Giana Moran…"

"Sorry," Gia lowered her head and let her mother continue to rant.

"You could have gotten lost by yourself, you could have been hurt with no one to help you. You could have been on that mountain for days before someone knew where you were! Never, ever, go riding again without a friend! Do you hear me, young lady?"

"Yeah."

"And now, let's talk about the fact that you were half a mile away from the closest trail!"

"I thought…"

"A trail you shouldn't have ridden on! Especially without someone watching you! That alone was stupid! Leaving the trail? Oh, Gia, don't even get me started on the dangers of leaving the trails! Getting hurt on the slopes is one thing, but getting hurt where no one can find you? You could have been out there for days!"

"You said that…"

"Days, Gia! If someone hadn't told the workers where they had last seen you, or if they had decided not to bother with waiting for you at all, no one would know you needed help! I didn't even know you had gone to the mountain!"

"Mrs. Moran?" a doctor came over. Gia was never so thankful to see one, as her mother had to calm down to speak to him. He presented her with some papers and started to go over with her what the x-rays had shown and what she needed to do to help Gia recover.

"And how long until she's clear to go Mountain Boarding?" Mrs. Moran asked and shot Gia a look that made her shrink in her seat.

"I'd wait for the injury to be completely healed before she got back on the board," the doctor said.

"How long will that be?"

"A couple of months. She may be out for the summer," the doctor said. Gia gave out a loud groan. Her mother signed all the forms, thanked the doctor, and then took Gia out to the car. Once they were inside, and the doors were closed, Mrs. Moran turned to Gia.

"What about your duties as a Ranger?"

"Mom…"

"How are you doing to fight like this? Gia, the doctor won't let you play sports! I highly doubt he'd approve of you fighting crime."

"I'm not fighting crime. I'm fighting aliens. I'll figure something out…"

"No, you're not," Mrs. Moran shook her head. "I can't say I hate doing this, Gia, but you're grounded."

"I…"

"Obviously, no mountain boarding until you're completely healed."

"Mom…"

"And I'm not sorry for this one, but no being a Power Ranger until you're healed."

"Gosei's not going to like that…"

"Gosei can kiss my ass," her mother growled.

"What about my teammates? Emma? You can't let her go into battle alone."

"You should have thought of that before you went down the mountain alone. I'm sure Gosei can figure something out."

"But mom…"

"Not another word, Gia. I'll take you home so you can rest. I'll have your father pick up your pain killers once he gets home from work."


	14. Broken

Gia couldn't stand the giggling, and tried to roll over in bed to turn away from it, but her arm made it to uncomfortable to do anything but lie on her back.

"You're probably the first superhero to be grounded from being a superhero," it was Emma giggling. She had been laughing all night since finding out Gia had been grounding for going to the mountains by herself.

"Stop laughing."

"If I stop laughing, I'll start yelling at you," Emma said. "I figured your mom yelled at you enough. You're grounded."

"Stop it."

"Emma, come and help me with dinner," Mr. Moran called as he walked through the door with Gia's pain killers and some take-out for dinner. Emma got up from the bed and walked over to serve herself as well as make up a plate for Gia. She brought the meal over to her best friend and set it on her lap.

Mrs. Moran and Mr. Moran sat around the small table in the corner of the room to agree on the terms for Gia's grounding. They were whispering, so Gia would have to wait until a decision was made before finding out what kind of hell she was in for. She turned to Emma.

"Someone's going to have to tell Gosei I'm out."

Emma continued to laugh and shake her head, "Who do you think would win in a screaming match? Your mother or Gosei?"

"Emma, stop it."

"I'm serious, Gia, I'm either laughing at you, or yelling at you. Which do you prefer?"

"Neither."

"What you did was stupid," Emma frowned. "Look, I get you needed some space and time to yourself, but you need to think! Something really bad could have happened to you. If it wasn't getting lost and hurt up in the mountains, and trapped for days because you broke your stupid arm, it could have been an alien coming for you."

"I had my morpher…"

"Your arm was broken! You told me you couldn't reach it! If Vrak had come, or those mutants, you would have been at their mercy! You're such an idiot sometimes."

"Sorry…"

"Sorry? Gia, how many times do you have to hear how important you are before you're going to stop doing stupid shit like ride your board down a fucking mountain by yourself?"

"I think I preferred the laughing," Gia muttered as she shrank into the bed and picked at the food on the plate. Emma saw Gia's defences were going up and so she sighed. She didn't want to be angry with Gia. She didn't want to start yelling. Fortunately, nothing had happened, and Emma was sure Gia was beating herself up already. After all, for the next couple of months, she didn't have to suffer the effects of her broken arm.

She pulled the yellow Ranger in for a hug, "I'm sorry. After dinner, I can help you text Jake if you want."

"Emma…"

"Ironically, you're too drugged to head out. And one handed texting while on painkillers might not be the most graceful conversation. Especially with autocorrect working against you."

-Megaforce-

In the morning, Rebecca was treated to a waffle breakfast made by Mr. Burrows. It was a little awkward for her that Troy's family was being so kind, but she did appreciate very much what they had done for her. She felt a little better, less angry with her father, but the hurt was still there.

She had spent a lot of the night thinking about what had happened and how her life had been since the death of her mother. She realized her mother wouldn't have approved of her behaviour, which made her feel guilty for the way she had been acting, but also that she had never been given the chance to grieve. Her father, in an attempt to put his mistakes behind him, had dismissed everything after the funeral and moved on with his life. He changed jobs, he changed cities, and he even started dating. Rebecca had seen a number of women walking in and out of her house in the morning. It was all moving so fast, but Rebecca still felt caught in the moment where she found out her mother was dead.

Murdered.

"I'm going to Brainfreeze," Troy said as he looked across the table at her, "You're more than welcome to come. One of my friends is bound to turn up."

Rebecca nodded her head. The first thing her mother would want her to do was apologize for the people she had hurt. She had caused a scene in the mall the other day, in front of Troy's friends, and wanted to apologize to them for disturbing their day.

"Rebecca, you're welcome here anytime," Mr. Burrows told her with a smile, and the invitation sounded sincere.

"C'mon, let's go. If we're first ones there, I can help you with some ice-breakers."

Rebecca followed her brother as they walked out of the house and took the bus to the mall. When they arrived, they walked straight to Ernie's Brainfreeze. Rebecca had a look around while Troy went to sit in a booth.

"You don't have to tell them anything you don't want. My friends don't get too pushy," this was new territory for Troy too, who before meeting his teammates never had any friends to share. He had to admit, it felt good teaching someone else how to make friends.

"What do you guys like to talk about?"

"Stuff," Troy said, "You know, anything that's happening. Noah, he's the guy with the glasses, the laptop, and he always wears blue. He's really into technology and science and all that stuff. Any of that interest you?"

Rebecca shook her head. She liked the internet. She loved taking pictures with her phone and posting them on Facebook. She knew her way around Twitter and Tumblr blindfolded, but she couldn't talk to anyone about technology beyond that.

"Well, Jake loves soccer, but he can hold a conversation about most sports. Do you play any sports?"

"Does carrying a basketball in my stomach count as a sport?"

"Guess not," Troy said. "Jordan's into art."

"Nope. Art's stupid."

"Maybe you share my interest. Martial arts? I've been teaching my friends a few things."

"Still, no."

"What about Emma? She's love BMX…"

"I've never heard of that store."

"It's not… never mind. Any interest in photography?"

"I thought I already said no to art."

"The environment?"

"You mean she's green? Great…" Rebecca rolled her eyes, "Now she's probably going to start preaching to me about all the things I…"

"She's not like that," Troy shook his head. "What are your interests?"

"Shopping, hanging out with friends."

"Your friends do drugs?"

"Yeah… I guess they aren't really my friends, either. Dad's been giving me money to save up, so I have a little something when the baby comes, but… I haven't really been saving it."

"You haven't?"

"My friends always need a little extra cash for weed and… stuff. They know dad gives me a baby allowance. They always say they'll pay me back, but…"

"How much money do they owe you?"

"Collectively?" Rebecca shrugged, "Five hundred. Look, it's no big deal. I barely knew them and so it's my…"

"I'd let it slid if this was your money, or even our dad's," Troy shook his head, "but your kid deserves a good start, right? Those five hundred bucks could be the start of a college fund, or an apartment for you and the baby, or… something. He needs that money."

"I can't really get a job. I'm not qualified for anything."

"No one is at sixteen."

"I guess I've got more thinking to do," Rebecca sighed. Then she looked over at the door as Jake walked in. He went straight to the counter before he noticed Troy in a booth. He walked over and took a seat. He looked across at his step-sister and sighed.

"You're back?"

"Cut her some slack, Jake. Her dad's a douche."

"So is my mom, you don't see me planting drugs on people," Jake rolled his eyes.

"Then your parents are perfect for each other," Troy said. "Rebecca knows what she did wrong and she wants to apologize for it. Do you know if Gia's showing up?"

"She's sick," Jake shook his head and glared at Rebecca. "You know, of all the people you could have used as a sucker, you sure did pick a great one. Her parents were pretty cool about the drugs… after a little talk. They believed her. But she went Mountain Boarding on her own. Something she only did because she was upset and needed to think."

"She's sick from Mountain Boarding?" Troy asked with a frown.

"She's sick for going by herself, not telling anyone where she was, trying a trail that was too advanced for her skill, going off that trail, wiping out, and breaking her arm. That's how she's sick."

"What? Is she okay?"

"She will be. Her arm is broken pretty bad, though. Emma says she's looking at a couple of months in a cast easily."

Rebecca shrank in her seat. She wasn't sure how everything was connected to her, but she did feel terribly for what had happened. She was about to turn to Jake, when someone else took a seat in the booth.

"Emma, we heard what happened to Gia," Troy said. "How is she?"

"She's alright. She's still in a bit of pain, but you know what's she's like."

"Can we see her?"

"She's resting. She's in pain and the painkillers knock her out. I'm just here to pick her up a smoothie," Emma said and then got up from the booth, "Speaking of which."

Emma walked over to the counter to place her order with Ernie. Normally he knew exactly what she wanted, but today it was going to be a little different. Jake got up and followed her to the counter. He sat down beside her, and as Ernie walked away to get started on the order, he leaned in.

"So, I didn't get the chance to ask last night, but what about the Ranger thing?" he whispered. "I don't know about you, but I don't think I'd be too happy letting her fight monsters with a broken arm?"

"Vanessa's grounded the yellow Ranger, too. She says Gosei can come talk to her if he's got a problem with it."

"Did you tell her Gosei's just a picture on a wall?"

"She says that means there won't be a problem. Gia won't be riding or Rangering until her arm is completely healed. It's kind of bumming her out."

"That's what I thought," Jake said and he reached into his bag. He took out a brown bear with a yellow bow. Emma chuckled as she took the gift.

"She's still got your tiger, Jake."

"She's taken it everywhere with her. It's seen better days. I thought maybe this would cheer her up a little."

"She loves tigers."

"Hey, bears are pretty bad ass, too. I wouldn't want to mess with one of them. Throw a little bow around their necks, and that makes them real scary."

Emma put the bear in her bag and smiled, "I'll give it to her."

Emma took the smoothies from Ernie, gave him the money, and then gave Jake a little, friendly nudged as she walked out. Jake watched her leave with a smile before turning back to the table and seeing Noah had joined Troy and Rebecca. He sat down with them and decided he would make an effort to bond with his step-sister.


	15. Protective Parents

Jake checked the messages on his phone and sighed, seeing they were all from his mother. He wanted nothing to do with her, sad that she couldn't accept the girl he had given his heart to. He wasn't certain how things would go in his relationship with Gia, but he wanted to give it a shot with her. Even if she broke his heart, he wanted to know what would happen.

He did miss his mother, and he missed the way things used to be. He remembered she used to tuck him in at night, read him a bedtime story, and hold him tight when he had a nightmare. She had taught him to tie his shoes and bought him his first soccer ball, shin pads, and cleats. She had always supported him, and always wanted the best for him. However, she had taken things too far. Jake could understand she was looking out for him, but the moment she hurt Gia was the moment he knew everything had changed.

"How was your day?" his father asked when he walked inside their hotel room. He was glad he had someone on his side. In the entire debate, Mr. Holling had supported Jake's love for Gia. He didn't question what his son wanted from the relationship, or what Gia would do once she was done with Jake if that day ever did come. Mr. Holling wanted Jake to be a teenage boy in a relationship, and if his heart was broken then that was just the normal cycle. He would eventually get over with it and find some other girl. In either case, this was Jake's life and Jake's decision to make. Mr. Holling knew the best thing he could do was support his son.

As a result, Mr. Holling had moved Jake out of their house. He knew his soon to be ex-wife would never leave willingly, so Mr. Holling took matters into his own hands. It meant he and Jake had to live in a small hotel room until they could find a place of their own, but neither seemed to mind. Mr. Holling worked during the day, and Jake was always out with friends. As long as they each had a bed and a TV for the end of the day, they were both happy.

"It was okay. I got to spend some time with mom's boyfriend's daughter."

"Really?" Mr. Holling asked. He already knew his wife had moved on, and even knew of her engagement. He wasn't pleased at how quickly it had all come for her, and suspected there may have been a little foul play while he believed the marriage to be strong, but he didn't want to make a bigger mess out of the divorce than it already was. His son was suffering enough and the end result for him would be the same. A divorce was a divorce. "What's she like?"

"Kind of… sweet, once you get to know her," Jake said. "At first I thought she was a bitch, because of what she had done to Gia, and just… the way she acted. Turns out, she's just a troubled kid."

This was something Mr. Holling liked about the small hotel room. He and Jake got to talk a lot more. Now that there was nowhere to hide in the evenings, he found his son was a lot more open and eager to share. Mr. Holling had learned a lot about Jake in the time they had spent in the hotel.

"A troubled kid with a good heart, I hope."

"Yeah," Jake nodded his head. "We may not be on good terms with our parents, but I wouldn't mind spending some time with her on holidays and stuff."

"I wouldn't mind having her over," Mr. Holling said. "Your family is my family."

"She's Troy's family too. She's his half-sister. His birth father is dating mom."

"That's… a coincidence," Mr. Holling chuckled. "Go get washed up for dinner. Room service should be here soon."

-Megaforce-

Gia's broken arm couldn't cancel the Moran's plans for dinner as they headed out for a night of their own, leaving Emma to have to care for Gia until they got back. For the most part, it was easy. She only needed to feed Gia dinner, make sure she didn't push herself too hard, and keep an eye out on how many pain killers she took. Aside from that, Emma was free for a night to herself, and so started to watch a documentary on wild cats. Gia watched it with her for the first half.

By the second half, she had fallen asleep. Emma turned off the TV and started to clean around the room when she heard a knock at the door. She took her morpher in her hand and opened the door just a crack until she saw it was Troy and Rebecca. She opened it a little wider and stepped outside.

"Rebecca wants to apologize."

"Gia's sleeping, and I'd rather not wake her up."

"Can you just tell her that I'm really sorry?" Rebecca asked. Emma shook her head.

"It won't help, especially not if it's coming through me. Gia doesn't trust… words, anymore."

"What?" Rebecca frowned and turned to her brother for clarification. He simply shrugged his shoulders.

"Makes sense. Just let her know we stopped by and we hope she feels better."

"I will," Emma smiled. She was about to turn around to head inside when she heard someone clear his throat. She turned around and saw the Morans were home early.

Troy nudged his sister forward, "Uh, Mr. Moran, Rebecca has something she wants to say."

"I do?"

"Yeah, you do."

Rebecca gulped. She could only assume she was looking at Gia's parents. Apologizing to Gia was one thing, but admitting to her parents that she had been the one to plant the drugs and the alcohol on their daughter was another thing completely. It was terrifying.

But she did it. One thought of what her mother would want her to do and she knew it was the right thing. She stood as straight as she could and admitted to her mistakes.

"The other day, I bumped into Gia at a bus stop. Not only did I kind of steal her bus money but… I was travelling across town and didn't want to get caught with drugs and booze on me so I kind of… planted it on her."

"You're the one?" Mr. Moran asked. Mrs. Moran gently grabbed his arm and opened the door for him.

"Maybe it's best you wait inside. I'll take care of this."

"Vanessa."

"Joe, you know how you get."

Mr. Moran nodded his head and walked inside to check up on Gia. Mrs. Moran stood before Rebecca with her arms crossed over her chest.

"I hope you understand the consequences to your actions. What you've done to my daughter is disgusting."

"I… uh…"

"She's been through enough. Her father already apologized for the strong outburst, but that's not something that can be erased from her mind. The thought of what could have happened to her if she had gotten caught by someone other than her parents, namely the police, has to be a terrifying one for her. Being wrongfully accused of doing drugs and drinking, being called a liar by her parents, having some kid play her for a sucker…"

"I'm really, really sorry," Rebecca pleaded. "I didn't think…"

"Because of this, because of what you've done, my daughter did something I know she would never, ever do in her right mind."

"I am sorry. I know it was wrong."

"Hand it over," Mrs. Moran held out her hand, "All the drugs and booze you have on you now. Give it all up."

"I don't…"

"Give it."

Rebecca sighed and reached into her purse. Troy gasped as she pulled out a little bag with pills and placed it into Mrs. Moran's hands. She looked to her brother guiltily.

"My friends just ask me to hold it. If I lose it, I have to pay for it."

"Why can't they hold it themselves?"

"I'm a minor?"

"I'll be holding it, now," Mrs. Moran said. "In fact, I'll be getting rid of it. If your friends have a problem with that, they can come and talk to me."

"But…"

"Trust me; I know what these people are like. I'll take care of it. Clean yourself up, and if you choose not to, then keep your filthy habit away from my daughters. Am I understood?"

"Yes, ma'am."

"Good. Now get off my doorstep."

"Have a good night, Mrs. Moran," Troy said before he wrapped his arm around his sister and walked with her away from the motel. Mrs. Moran turned to Emma, who had been outside listening the entire time. She held up the bag for Emma to see.

"If I find you anywhere near this disgusting stuff, I'll kick your ass so hard you'll never sit on it again, am I understood?"

Emma nodded her head and ducked inside. She knew what Mrs. Moran meant, remembering the story from when she had abused drugs. Mrs. Moran was just trying to look out for her.

Though Emma was sure that was a threat of which she would follow through.


	16. A Loving Home

Not wanting to take up too much of the Burrows' time and space, especially with a new baby, Rebecca went back to her own home that night. It had been an eventful day, but one she wished not to repeat.

"You're home?" her father called from the kitchen when he heard the door open. Rebecca nodded her head and walked to the living room. She took a seat on the couch and turned to the TV to tune him out. Her father walked in, grabbed the remote, and shut off the TV.

"Have you eaten?"

"Yes."

"None of that crap fast food, right? You know that's not good for you or the baby…"

"I want to adopt," she said. It had been a decision she had thought long and hard about, but never said anything to her father beyond when she first tried to raise the issue and he shut her down. He crossed his arms over his chest and shook his head.

"Rebecca, this child is your responsibility…"

"And I'm fucked up, dad," Rebecca shook her head. "I've done a lot of thinking lately, especially today. You've screwed me up…"

"I apologized, Rebecca."

"You kept a family hidden from me and mom for fourteen years! I'm sorry doesn't begin to erase that pretty little lie!"

"Rebecca…"

"Your whole relationship started from a lie! You were married when you and my mom hooked up!"

"I loved her!"

"You _lied_! You killed her! When she found out, you didn't even try to handle it! I heard you! I heard you from the top of the stairs. You tried to brush the issue under the carpet like it meant nothing! You abandoned your old family and lied to your new one!"

"Rebecca…"

"Mom shouldn't have run away that night, it should have been you! You should have been walking those streets…"

"Rebecca Daniels!"

"You abandoned your wife and son, and they're the lucky ones! Troy's still got scars from that, but at least he found a happy family! But then you go with mom, you lie to her, and then you let her get killed…"

"I didn't let anything happen to her, Rebecca. It was an unfortunate… it was unfortunate…"

"It was murder! You let mom run away because of your lies, she gets murdered, you bury her in the ground and then forget about her. Not even two years later you're asking some bitch to be your bride…"

"Don't you dare talk about your step-mother like that!"

"How do you think I feel, dad? Did it ever cross your mind to maybe spend some time taking care of your daughter? Or any of your children? As soon as shit goes bad, do you just stick your tail between your legs and abandon the people who need you most? Now you want me to keep my son? You want me to bring a child into this dysfunctional…"

"Rebecca, lower your voice!"

"No! We're a dysfunctional, fucked up…"

"Young lady, you watch your mouth."

"We're a dysfunctional, fucked up family, and you're a horrible father! You care more about yourself than your two kids or wives! I am not bringing my son into this hell hole!"

"I am your father and you will not speak to me that way!" her father shouted and before Rebecca could do anything she felt the back of his hand slap her cheek. She stumbled backwards, placed her hand on her cheek as her eyes really began to water. She looked up at her father in horror and disgust.

Carl immediately regretted his action as he looked down at his hand and then to his daughter. She was distraught, and she had every right to be. He had lost control.

"Sweetheart…"

He reached out to her, he tried to take her into his arms to apologize for what he had done, but Rebecca shoved him aggressively and ran from the house.

-Megaforce-

Mrs. Burrows was tired, but wide awake in the middle of the night. Though Ryan was a true gift, she was also a pain in the ass. It was three in the morning, but that didn't stop the young girl from demanding a snack.

"Hopefully that holds you until lunch," Mrs. Burrows whispered and lowered her daughter into the crib. "Mommy's not as young as she used to be."

She raised the side of the crib and left the room quietly. As she crossed the hall, she thought she heard something outside. Slowly and carefully, she walked down the stairs to the front door. She peeked out the window first, to see who was on her porch, but all she saw was someone curled up against the wall of the house. She stepped outside and heard the girl crying.

"Rebecca?" she asked as she turned on the porch light and saw her ex-husband's daughter was on her door step. Rebecca looked up, and then seemed horrified for having come. She scrambled to get up to her feet and leave.

"I'm… I'm sorry. I couldn't think of anywhere else to go," she rushed out as she tried to rush off. Mrs. Burrows grabbed her arm and pulled her in for a hug.

"You came to the right place," she told her and walked her inside. "The guest bedroom is the way you left it. Go get some rest."

"I can find somewhere else…"

"I insist. A young girl like you should stay off the streets at this hour. Head upstairs. I've got some pyjamas you can borrow. You'll be more comfortable."

"Thank you, Mrs. Burrows."

Rebecca walked upstairs, followed by Mrs. Burrows, who went to get the girl a set of pyjamas.

"What's going on?" Mr. Burrows sat up in bed.

"Rebecca's going to be staying with us for a while."

"For a while?"

"Is that a problem?"

Mr. Burrows shook his head. "Troy's family is my family. Are you okay with it, though? This is your ex-husband's daughter. This is the child he conceived with another woman while he was married to you."

"He hit her, Chris. I saw a mark on her cheek."

"Are you sure?"

"I'm okay with it. I'd hate myself for turning her away because of the way I feel. She doesn't deserve that."

Mr. Burrows nodded and got out of bed. He helped his wife find a set of pyjamas, and then took out the pillow she had been using during her pregnancy. He gave it to his wife with a smile.

"You loved this thing more than you loved me for the last few months," he teased. Mrs. Burrows hugged the pillow and nodded her head.

"Looks like Steve's going to get a new lady friend," she teased her husband back by using the name she had affectionately given the pillow. "I'll miss what we had, but it's for the best."

Mr. Burrows stuck out his tongue and let his wife go to deliver the pyjamas and pillow to Rebecca. Mrs. Burrows knocked on the guest bedroom door before walking in. She gave the pyjamas to the teenager and then put the pillow on the bed.

"Do you know what this is?"

"A funny looking pillow?"

"Have you been having trouble getting comfortable in bed?"

Rebecca nodded her head and rubbed her stomach, "Basketballs don't make great bed partners."

"This helps. His name is Steve," Mrs. Burrows smiled. "I used him while I was pregnant with Troy, and again with Ryan. He's the greatest man I've ever slept with."

Rebecca chuckled lightly at the joke. She touched the pillow, "Thank you."

"We'll see about getting you some more stuff tomorrow. I'll have Troy or Mr. Burrows take you out. This should be good for tonight."

"I don't want to impose…"

"You're family, Rebecca. You'll stay as long as you need."

"I…"

"Insist. I'll ask you for help with some chores around the house. A little babysitting here and there. Some cleaning. You know, the usual."

"Thank you, Mrs. Burrows. This means a lot."

"Good night, sweetheart."


End file.
